Tiby.co.uk
Safe banking over the phone and internet:
Scenario:
You really want to buy something like a gift, or make a booking for a coach trip etc. but in this particular case you need to talk to the sellers and give them your card details over the phone.You feel uncomfortable about giving your name, card number, expiry date and CVV 3 digit number of the card.It is not surprising that you are uncomfortable with that. For one thing, you are talking out loud, and walls have ears! For another thing, the seller could disclose those details to a friend of a friend who then uses your details to pay for something elsewhere with no obvious lead back to your seller.There is however, an easy way to buy your goods without any effort or worry in that regard. Here is how:1: Do not use your main bank for the card details by phone or internet.2: Have a second different internet bank such as Starling.3: On Starling internet bank you can create a "virtual debit card" extra to your usual Starling debit card. A virtual card works exactly like a normal plastic card, but there is no plastic involved, so it can not be used if a card reader insert is required, say at a shop till. *4: You can transfer your money to/from your Starling cards very easily, so only put just enough on to your virtual debit card to buy your goods a short while before the transaction.5: Use the "virtual debit card" details over the phone or on the internet just as you would with any regular card. It works fine when no hard plastic is needed.6: Starling will immediately notify you about the transaction which you have just completed, and you can check your balance right there and then.7: If you had put a few pounds extra on to your vitual card, then you can now tranfer that residue back off your virtual card so that there is nothing left on it.Any crooks who try to use your card details will now be wasting their time, because there are no longer any funds on that virtual card. The card will not work without sufficient transaction funds. Furthermore, if you are sure that no refunds will ever be involved back to your card for faulty goods/coach cancellation etc. then you can delete the card entirely and startup a new virtual card which will have a new number ready for a new transaction.This method is called "disposable debit cards". It is becoming very popular, and Starling bank is ahead of the game at this time. The cards are free with no setup or transaction fees, and easily set up in seconds. They are covered by Mastercard, and Starling bank is part of FSCSBy using this method to pay, there is no disclosure of bank account or sort code number. A Starling bank virtual debit card can also be used on Google Wallet.*