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Learning that your credit card was part of a data breach can be scary. A data breach exposes your personal information to someone who is not authorized to see it. There is nothing you can do to keep it from happening, and it may not be discovered right away. However, there are things you can do to limit potential damage.
You don't need to cancel your credit card, though. You can request a new credit card number and take other precautions if your data has been compromised.
What to Do With Your Credit Card After a Data Breach
A data breach affecting an account of yours doesn't necessarily mean that your data is now being used by a criminal, but it does mean that potential exists. Once you have been informed of a breach, it's smart to make sure you're doing what you can to keep your data safe. Here are some steps you can take.
1. Request New Credit Cards
If your credit card number was exposed in a breach, you may want to call your credit card issuer and ask for new cards. The procedure is the same as if you lost a credit card. It will still be your account, with your credit history and credit limits, but the number will change. Many card issuers expedite shipment if it's requested. You can use your new card exactly as you did your old one. If you have recurring charges or autopayments that use your old card number, however, you'll need to give them the updated credit card account number.
2. Change Your Passwords
Changing your password can help keep criminals from being able to access your account. Create a new, strong password. Don't reuse passwords from other accounts (and if you've been using the same password for multiple accounts, now's a good time to stop). A password manager can help you keep track. Multifactor authentication can also help you better protect your accounts.
3. Check Transactions on Your Online Account
This is good credit hygiene at all times, but keeping close tabs on your account transactions is crucial after a breach. You can also consider setting up alerts to let you know every time your credit card number is used.
Additional Steps to Take After a Data Breach
If you want to lock down your information even more, you can also:
- Add a fraud alert to your credit file. You have the right to add a fraud alert by notifying one of the three major credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion or Equifax)—the other two are automatically notified. Fraud alerts last for one year and are renewable, although extended fraud alerts are available to those who have been victimized by identity fraud. Fraud alerts ask potential new creditors to take additional steps to verify your identity.
- Freeze your credit. You also have the right to freeze your credit, which limits creditors' access to your credit report. When a credit freeze is in place, your credit cannot be checked if your credit information is used to open a new account—even a legitimate one. If you apply for credit, you'll need to lift the freeze so your credit can be checked. A credit freeze offers the best protection against someone using your personal information, but it comes with certain hassles: You have to freeze your credit report at each credit bureau individually, and if you want to thaw your credit, that is also done by each bureau. In many cases, a fraud alert may be preferable.
How to Protect Your Credit Card Information
You cannot prevent a data breach, but your daily habits can help you keep unauthorized people from accessing or using your credit card number. Here are some things you can do.
- Don't give out your credit card number. If there are authorized users on your credit card, make sure they practice good habits as well.
- Don't save your account password online.
- Don't keep a photo of your card on your phone (a digital wallet is fine).
- Don't use public Wi-Fi when using your credit card to order online.
- Consider using a digital wallet.
The Bottom Line
Being notified that your personal information may have been compromised in a data breach can be scary. Your best bet in the wake of a data breach is damage control, and making the information as useless as you can. Changing credit card account numbers and passwords can help, and so can checking your credit card statements carefully. You can also set up alerts to let you know when cards are used.
Another way to look for unauthorized activity is to regularly check your credit reports. In addition to checking your credit reports yourself, you can consider credit monitoring services that alert you when there are changes to your credit report, such as someone checking your credit for a credit application. Experian offers free credit monitoring that will send you alerts when someone submits a credit application, triggering a credit check with Experian and/or when a new account is reported.