ORLANDO, Fla. – Last year, 18 million Americans were defrauded through mobile payment apps or digital wallets.
However, unlike your credit or debit card, money you lose through a scam involving mobile payment apps don’t have as much fraud protection. So, it may be nearly impossible to get your money back.
A couple clicks here a couple clicks there and the bills paid. The debt is done. Emergency avoided. But how safe is your money?
Scams involving mobile payment apps are three to four times higher than traditional payment methods.
So, what can you do to protect yourself?
First, only download apps you trust. Make sure you have a passcode to get into your phone. Fingerprint or facial recognition is even better.
Also, don’t send payments using public Wi-Fi and always use a credit card and not a debit card for mobile app payments, as credit cards have better fraud protection than debit cards.
In an AARP survey, more than half of people who use mobile payment apps falsely believe they would get their money back if they sent the money in error.
That is why you want to double or even triple check before you send money to someone.