Ask Visa, MC, Discover, etc.
My card is NOT signed. On that line is: “ASK FOR PHOTO I.D.”
I am more worried about someone misusing my card.
A clerk that doesn’t ask for Photo I.D.
Very very few and I don’t applaud them. I’ve seen lots of customers who don’t sign at all and I always advise them against it. I have “ask for ID” on mine. My ID has my name picture and my signature. That should be adequate. I suppose I could do both.
Ahhhhhhh finally.
With the chip-and-pin cards that Crusoe mentioned earlier
there is an unique feature, a 4 digit pin.
No need to scrutinise a card for whether there is a correct signature given, in other words finding or stealing a card is still not enough, you also need the pin.
After a brief read through the provided link my take on it is that if cashiers followed strict procedure on every CC purchase there would be a lot less fraud and CC purchases would be more inconvienient than simply presenting an ID with your CC.
Bambi correctly pointed out that it doesn’t say check ID unless the card is not signed. It does say call in a code 10 if you think the signatures don’t match. How may sales would that screw up. Honestly hecking all the little security numbers and carefully examining the signature would make each transaction longer than simply presenting and ID. In the Pit thread customers are complaining about how they are hassled at stores. Just imagine how loud the whining would be if each cashier carefully examined all the security points for every purchase.
Citibank has a product called Photocard which puts your picture on the credit card itself. If your bank offers this as well, you might feel better about signing your credit card.
With CC fraud as big as it is I’m amazed that all banks aren’t changing over to photo cards. Of course technology being what it is soon the crooks will be easily faking those too.
I have “Photo ID Required” on all my cards, in place of my signature. Only once have I had a
clerk refuse my card because it wasn’t signed, I made her call a supervisor and it was
accepted. The smart ass clerk “reminded” me as I was leaving that I had to sign my
card. When I got home I called M/C security and asked them. I was told it was an
acceptable alternative.
I too rarely get asked, since most people never look at the back of the card, even on
high dollar purchases. When a clerk does ask I always thank them.
The requirements for using a credit card have been well explained in the replies. I would like to add what I have read about credit cards-ID isn’t needed or wanted. My reference is Bruce Schneider, someone who seems to understand security better than most. What he says is simply that when money is involved, like credit cards, the businesses have figured out the best approach. Since one can’t validate the individual, one needs to validate the transaction. It doesn’t matter whether the signature matches, I don’t sign my cards since I have been told that simply gives the thief a signature to practice with and makes challenging a purchase somewhat harder, but what matters is that the pattern of purchases are constantly examined. If a 60 yr old lady suddenly starts buying performance parts for a truck, then the CC company acts. They can’t stop those purchases, but they can stop future fraud from that card. It is simply the best way to minimize the losses, there will always be losses but the state-of-the-art in stopping CC fraud is constant scanning of purchase patterns. BTW, Mr. Schneider is very unimpressed with airline security since they seem so focused on identifying the traveler and stopping weapons. Both approaches are relatively ineffective. Identifying patterns works for CC companies and Mr. Schneider feels that is the best thing for homeland security. Yes it is intrusive, but so is the present security regime.
Well, that might be true of Mastercard, but it’s not true of Visa. Again, from Bambi’s linked document:
Actually, it even seems to be against Mastercard policy, as stated in the Mastercard Merchant Rules (pdf):
Mastercard can shove their policy…
The signature is for their protection, not the cardholder’s. This leaves the cardholder with no protection at all. This had brought on the “See ID” thing.
The actual practice of using and accepting CC’s is so divergent from the “policy” it’s laughably useless.
Don’t get your panties in a twist. I was simply providing factual information, which is the main purpose of this forum.
Not possessing a Mastercard, i am completely indifferent to their policies.
I’ve been using “Ask for photo ID” ever since I read this Mailbag article:
Should you sign the back of your credit cards?.
I get asked for ID about 50% of the time at stores that require a signature at all (as opposed to somewhere like McDonalds, that doesn’t bother).
I’ve never had a cashier refuse to accept it - apparently the actual Visa/Mastercard rules aren’t widely known in the trenches!
Arjuna34
Sorry.
It was originally meant in a “whatever” tone. And we all know how well sarcasm (etc) is conveyed via text.
My store has had a purchase cancelled because someone used a stolen credit card that was signed. Now how is my store supposed to fight off this thief when according to CC agreements we can not check that person’s ID?
Exactly. In the merchant agreement it clearly states that the merchant has certain responsibilities to insure that the person useing the card is the one the card was issued to. It then goes on to list several things that we are required to do to insure a secure purchase. It does not include asking for ID unless the card is not signed. If the signitures are in question we’re supposed to call the company. After reading what we’re supposed to do in the agreement I think it’s quicker for customer and merchant to check ID. I’d love to have a copy of the agreement handy for the customers who bitch when I ask for ID. Okay dear customer. I’ll follow the letter of the agreement if you insist. Read along with me now, step 1, etc.
I’m thinking they’d be asking you to check ID fairly soon and the cries of “just do your fuckin job and stop hassling me” would end. Doing the job by the letter of the agreement is a hassle.
I’m with Lakai in being frustrated by the nonsensical and contradictory nature of this policy. When we met with a merchant account agent he said that we could be liable for chargebacks if it was deemed we hadn’t taken sufficient time to assure that the card used in the transaction actually belonged to the person using it. Which meant simply checking ID. But if that’s against the issuer’s policy, then…How on earth if I’m collecting orders at a market or fair can I prevent fraud if I can’t check ID? Of course, that’s kind of a unique situation and there other attendant problems that have no bearing in this thread.
Anecdotal: On my own cards I sign and write PLEASE SEE IDENTIFICATION. With all the swipe machines, it’s rare that a clerk ever handle the card and rarer still that it gets read and the ID checked.
When I worked at Starbucks, I always flipped cards over and if they said “See ID” I always checked. A third would thank me, a third would just produce the ID without comment, and a third woud flip out about the “hassle.”
Checking cards for signatures and comparing the card signature to the one on the credit slip is rapidly going the way of checking signatures on bank checks.
What with outside pay at fuel stations and slide the card, sign on that electronic gizmo and get out of the way operations at many stores, who looks at the card?
Oh yes, about that title. “Nessecary” is usually spelled “necessary” where I come from. You had all the letters but their order could use improvement. Ain’t it strange what can slip through when you’re in a rush? 
It really isn’t that difficult. I do these steps all the time exactly to the letter all day long.
[ol][li]Swipe the card.[/li][li]Check the expiration date. If it’s expired, call for authorization. If not, go on.[/li][li]Check to see whether it’s signed. If it’s not, have the customer sign it (after having presented identification) and call for authorization.[/li][li]Check the security hologram, the embossed numbers, and other security features on the card. This takes a couple seconds, at most.[/li][li]Compare the signature on the credit receipt to the signature on the card. If it doesn’t reasonably match, place a code 10 call. If it does, go on.[/li][li]Check the last four numbers of the credit card on the credit receipt to make sure they match the last four on the card. If they don’t, place a code 10 call. If they do, thank the customer and send him on his way.[/ol][/li]
If you have a freestanding credit terminal (that is, not rolled into your POS system), then the steps are a little different (swipe card, type in transaction amount, type in last four of the card), but the theme is the same.
If you do these steps each time, you’ll be protected in case of a chargeback.
Lakai, the remedies for chargebacks are listed in the merchant manual I linked to above. Each chargeback code has its own procedures, but if you followed the authorization procedures then you shouldn’t have a problem contesting the chargeback.
David, as for the the self-serve terminals (gas stations, mostly) and no-signature locations (fast food, pharmacy drive-thrus), they have a different merchant agreement that says they don’t have to collect the customers’ signatures. They pay more for this service, as it is more prone to fraud.
With the signature capture terminals (like at Target), the cashier is still supposed to check the signature on the screen against the signature on the card.