KEY POINTS:
Credit card fraudsters are making charitable donations using stolen cards - but they're not trying to be nice.
Symantec's security response weblog noted the interesting trend, where scammers will use charities to test if a card is active without raising suspicion.
"In the world of carding, where stolen credit card information is bought and sold," reads the blog posting, "carders need to know if the credit cards they are buying or selling can actually be used. It is sometimes difficult for them to verify this without raising any alarm bells and risking that their cards will be identified as stolen and disabled."
Old methods of testing stolen cards included charging a few cents to cards, but behaviour monitors on credit card company computers will flag unusual transactions.
As donating to charities is not a daily practice, it's less likely that computers will pick up on the fraud.
- NZ HERALD STAFF
