IP: Viewing credit card bills online

[Dave Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

This has worried me a lot also. That info is just too easy to come by

Dave


> Date: Thu, 27 Apr 2000 09:14:16 -0400
> From: David Rosensweig <dlrosens () seas upenn edu>
> To: farber () cis upenn edu
> Subject: Viewing credit card bills online
>
> Prof. Farber,
>
> I thought I'd bring to your attentino something I haven't seen discussed
> and thought might be of interest to your IP readers: the lax
> registration process for services that allow you to view your credit
> card statements online.
>
> I recently registered for online bill-viewing service for my MBNA Visa
> card at www.mbnanetaccess.com.  I also registered my American Express
> card on their site.  What worries me is the small amount of information
> they requested.  For each site, all I needed to register as a first-time
> user was my credit number, my name as it appears on the card, all or
> part of my social security number, and my date of birth.  For MBNA it
> also asks for my phone number and mother's maiden name.
>
> By asking for such little information it makes the registration easier
> and simpler.  I was able to view my accounts in under a minute as a
> new-user.  But the information these sites request is so easy obtain --
> any clerk in a store could look at my credit number, and the other
> personal info is easily available.  If I had never registered for this
> service, I might never know if someone else had registered under my name
> and wreaked havoc with my account.
>
> I remember in earlier days of online bill paying and even web-based
> services like this for my bank, I had to request a username/password and
> they sent it to me via snail mail.  While it was more inconvenient, it
> was a bit safer than today's system.  Until better a personal
> identication token system is established, I'd prefer to wait for my
> password in the mail.
>
> Best,
> David