Credit Card Alerts (2024)

FAQs

What is the credit card hack rule? ›

The date at the end of the billing cycle is your payment due date. By making a credit card payment 15 days before your payment due date—and again three days before—you're able to reduce your balances and show a lower credit utilization ratio before your billing cycle ends.

Did you know one of the best tools against credit card fraud is in your pocket? With only a few simple steps, credit card users can enable mobile alerts from their preferred credit card mobile app. Most major credit card providers and banks offer mobile apps for both Android and iPhone mobile devices.

If a transaction meets the trigger settings, but a Visa Purchase Alert is not received, it is possible that the particular transaction was not processed by Visa's payment network, VisaNet. If it's processed by another payment network, Visa will not be able to send Visa Purchase Alerts to cardholders.

The Takeaway

The 15/3 credit card payment rule is a strategy that involves making two payments each month to your credit card company. You make one payment 15 days before your statement is due and another payment three days before the due date.

The authorities typically track fraudulent credit card transactions by: Checking transaction timestamp and IP address. Using geolocation tracking. Investigating the buyer's data and further account activity.

Credit card statements usually do NOT show the details on what items you bought. But they would clearly show the company/store/vendor, and the transaction amount. One can guess what it might be based on the store and the amount.

Similarly to card skimming, card scanning is a type of payment card theft where the fraudster with a scanning device gets close enough to your bag or wallet to scan your card number. This type of fraud is enabled by the fact that today's payment cards typically work on Radio Identification Frequency (RFID) technology.

Do credit card companies hate when you pay in full? ›

Yes, credit card companies do like it when you pay in full each month. In fact, they consider it a sign of creditworthiness and active use of your credit card. Carrying a balance month-to-month increases your debt through interest charges and can hurt your credit score if your balance is over 30% of your credit limit.

But despite what you may have heard, there's nothing special about the hack itself. Making multiple payments a month could help keep your balances low and avoid late payments, but there's no extra advantage if you do it 15 days or three days ahead of your statement date or due date.

So yes, the shopping cart trick does exist. No, despite claims to the contrary, it does not help you get a new credit card account without a hard credit inquiry. Rather, you can use it to see if you're pre-approved for a certain store card, which can be quite helpful.

Pay your balance every month

Paying the balance in full has great benefits. If you wait to pay the balance or only make the minimum payment it accrues interest. If you let this continue it can potentially get out of hand and lead to debt. Missing a payment can not only accrue interest but hurt your credit score.

The 20/10 rule of thumb is a budgeting technique that can be an effective way to keep your debt under control. It says your total debt shouldn't equal more than 20% of your annual income, and that your monthly debt payments shouldn't be more than 10% of your monthly income.