Each day innumerable transactions take place over the internet, telephone or mail. Such transactions are significantly different from traditional in-store sales, in that neither the customer nor the credit card are present at the merchant location during the entire transaction process, making it exceptionally challenging to detect fraud.
To ensure the authenticity and security of all merchant account transactions, mentioned below are the best practices that should be followed for “Card Not Present” transactions:
- Authorize Every Sale On The Order Date
Usually, authorizations are valid for specific periods. For instance, Visa is valid for 7 days and MasterCard for up to 30 days. This makes it important for merchandise to be shipped and sales to be deposited within the specified time frame, or else the authorization will expire.
- Record The Card Account Number On The Sales Draft
It should be noted that the Visa Card numbers always begin with “4” and contain a total of 13 to 16 digits. A MasterCard number on the other hand begins with “5” and comprises of 16 digits. Diners’ cards begin with “36” and have MC brand mark on their back and are generally accepted by any merchant accepting MasterCard.
- Truncate Account Numbers On Customer Copies Of Sales Drafts
Make sure you never send any sales draft through email or mail with the entire card number inscribed on it. It is essential that all transaction receipts display only the last four digits of the card number.
