What is a best practice to help prevent credit or debit card fraud?

• A. Monitor your bank statements for unfamiliar charges
• B. Share your PIN with family
• C. Use the same password for all accounts
• D. Use public Wi-Fi for financial transactions

Answer: (A)

Monitoring your bank statements for unfamiliar charges helps prevent card fraud by catching unauthorized activity as soon as it appears. Card fraud can happen through skimming, data breaches, or online misuse, and regular review or transaction alerts let you spot a charge you didn’t authorize. When you notice something suspect, you can report it quickly to your bank, which can freeze or replace the card and reverse or limit the fraudulent activity. Swift reporting often reduces your liability and helps stop the thief from causing more damage.

Other practices that people might consider—like sharing your PIN with a family member, using the same password for multiple accounts, or conducting financial transactions over public Wi‑Fi—raise risk instead of lowering it. Sharing a PIN gives others direct access to your funds, reusing passwords makes it easier for criminals to break in, and public Wi‑Fi can expose your financial information to interception. Focusing on watching for unfamiliar charges provides a practical, ongoing defense against fraud.