Why does our credit card get hacked every time we go to WDW?

[Simba's Mom]

It seems like every time we go to WDW our credit card gets hacked. Yesterday DH got a "fraud alert" and had to cancel his card. Seems like someone charged 1 cent, then a few minutes later, a charge for about $10-$20, which was when he got the alert and canceled the card (Good work by the CC Company) Does this ever happen to anyone else?
Mods-feel free to move this if there's a better location.

 

[squeezeplay101]

It seems like every time we go to WDW our credit card gets hacked. Yesterday DH got a "fraud alert" and had to cancel his card. Seems like someone charged 1 cent, then a few minutes later, a charge for about $10-$20, which was when he got the alert and canceled the card (Good work by the CC Company) Does this ever happen to anyone else?
Mods-feel free to move this if there's a better location.

I haven't had that issue, thankfully!

Any thoughts on what you do differently while at WDW with your credit cards? I keep mine in RFID protectors, and keep my cards in sight when using them. Vacation spots can be easy pickings for thieves to get your credit card info

 

[Chirple]

It seems like every time we go to WDW our credit card gets hacked. Yesterday DH got a "fraud alert" and had to cancel his card. Seems like someone charged 1 cent, then a few minutes later, a charge for about $10-$20, which was when he got the alert and canceled the card (Good work by the CC Company) Does this ever happen to anyone else?
Mods-feel free to move this if there's a better location.

Happened to my husband once or twice in WDW. He now uses an RFID wallet. I also have an RFID wallet but use those blocking sleeves when I switch to one that doesn't have it. We use cash, gift cards, or our Disney Rewards cards to pay for meals and snacks. If making a store purchase, I use Apple Wallet.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Happened to my husband once or twice in WDW. He now uses an RFID wallet. I also have an RFID wallet but use those blocking sleeves when I switch to one that doesn't have it. We use cash, gift cards, or our Disney Rewards cards to pay for meals and snacks. If making a store purchase, I use Apple Wallet.

DH has an RFID wallet. However, I think it's a great idea to use only cash, gift cards, and Disney Rewards card to pay for meals and snacks going forward.

 

[kdonnel]

Skimmers are a common beginning to credit card fraud. If you are driving to Disney it could be one or more of the gas stations you stop at along the way.

 

[kdonnel]

Digital Wallets like Apple Wallet, Samsung Pay, and Google Wallet are more resistant against skimming so you can reduce you chances of having your card compromised by using one of those payment methods.

And always use a credit card, not a debit card, so you don't have to worry about it being your money at risk.

 

[MICKIMINI]

It has happened twice. Once, we actually figured out it happened and turned it over to the fraud department at the CC co. The other time it happened, supposedly it was when we purchased something from a local business at home just before we went. Always bring AMEX and 2 different Visa cards. If that was your only card, you'd be pretty screwed. We always carry about $500 in cash and gift cards too. I think you can still cash a check at the desk at a DVC resort, but I never think to put a check in my wallet. Agree with OP, always use credit cards!

 

[lowlight]

It has happened to me twice, the last two times I have gone actually. It was on a card I barely used on property (use MB mostly) and always tap to pay instead of inserting. It must have been someone using an RF scanner tool somewhere, so I keep it in a RFID sleeve.

 

[soccerdad72]

Probably not specific issue with WDW, but vacation destinations in general.

 

[Brian Noble]

Digital Wallets like Apple Wallet, Samsung Pay, and Google Wallet are more resistant against skimming so you can reduce you chances of having your card compromised by using one of those payment methods.

This is also true of contactless credit cards and EMV chip payments. While someone can get a contactless card to respond by placing a device within an inch or two of it, the response is not particularly useful to a fraudster later because of the protocol they use. So the RFID blockers don't really add much.

I haven't had a card fraudulently charged in years, and that includes many trips to WDW. That is probably in part because I use contactless or EMV payments almost exclusively at this point.

 

[jimmymc]

Luckily not yet, but I also only use my Disney card for Disney World purchases. And most of those are done through the app or as contactless, which are more difficult to steal.

 

[DizneyFamof4]

Zero times for us. But we almost pay everything with our MB's (since they have a PIN code for security) and then stop in the lobby every couple of days and pay those charges off with discounted GC's.

 

[HopperFan]

Orlando aka Disney World vicinity is the only place my cards ever got hacked.

 

[gr8ful]

Vacation spots can be easy pickings for thieves to get your credit card info

Also airports and other public transportation facilities.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Skimmers are a common beginning to credit card fraud. If you are driving to Disney it could be one or more of the gas stations you stop at along the way.

Don't drive to Disney, and never been hacked at home (although every few months there's an article in the local paper about Skimmers at local gas stations).

 

[china mom]

Skimmers are a common beginning to credit card fraud. If you are driving to Disney it could be one or more of the gas stations you stop at along the way.

I was going to bring that up. They have also found skimmers in airports. DH is huge on us only using cash at the airport.

 

[loves to dive]

I had it happen once at WDW. I only had that card with me so I had to call hubby at home and have him put the info from the joint CC in MDE so I could use it to put on the hotel bill (he knows my login info so I didn't have to say it over the phone). I had already bought gift cards and had cash so cancelling it wasn't a huge deal. I could mobile order through MDE. When I cancelled the card, they gave me a new card # that I could use until the physical card arrived. I do drive down so do stop for gas on the way down (paid cash for gas on the way back home). My CC company caught it immediately, it was only something like $2. Now I carry the joint card as well as my personal CC and just put the joint card in the safe. I never carry a debit card, not even at home. I have one and use it maybe once or twice a year to get cash out of the bank. I also never use the joint card, I don't even carry it with me at home either.

 

[monsterkitty]

Haven't been hacked at WDW, but we were getting hacked at our local Walmart every time we went there. Last summer we would get a fraudulent charge, cancel that card and get a new card. Happened again, and again, and again. DH had 3 cards with fraudulent charges and I had 2. I finally noticed that after we had been to Walmart was when the charges happened. They do not have touchless at Walmart.

Fastforward to this summer, DH went to Walmart, used his debt card, and a few days later he got an alert from the bank about a charge in TX. A few weeks later I used my credit card at Walmart and a few days later the charges started coming in from CA.

We should have learned last summer but we were hoping the issues had been resolved. Well, we have resolved the issues and once again will not shop at Walmart. (From NextDoor posts this is still an issue at both Walmarts near me.)

 

[_19disnA]

A few years ago I have a debit card 'compromised' (bank's term not mine) on two separate occasions and a relative in another part of the country had a similar situation a few months later. Bank was always vague about what the issue was, but got the impression that debit transactions are somehow less secure than using a credit card. I now only use my debit card at an ATM to get cash and haven't had any recent 'issues'. I stopped using my debit card for any other types of purchases.

 

[Christine]

Every time I go to Florida it happens and I assume it's happening outside of Disney. I can go anywhere else and it doesn't happen.