Why Bin Numbers Are Essential To Modern Businesses
Running a business today can be hard work
Running a business today can be hard work. There are all kinds of potential problems that you can run into. One growing problems for businesses is charge back fees that occur thanks to fraudulent transactions. It isn't just the customer who loses out when their credit card has been stolen, it's your business too! That is where BIN numbers can come in useful.
How Fraud Affects Businesses
Thousands of businesses are affected by fraudulent transactions each year. When somebody steals another person's credit card, the first thing that they usually do is buy something online. They typically spend quite a lot of money and enjoy a little shopping spree at their victim's expense. To the company it's just another transaction.
What then happens is the customer realises that their card has been stolen and they contact their card issuer. The issuer puts a stop to the card and then applies a charge back to the businesses where the money was spent. This guarantees the victim that they get their money back, but unfortunately the business is left out of pocket. The goods have been sold and the fraudster has gotten away. This means that you are actually losing money through no fault of your own. The good news is, it can be prevented thanks to something that is known as BIN numbers.
What Are BIN Numbers and How Can They Help?
BIN numbers are the first six numbers that you see on your bank card. The long number right in the centre contains a lot of information about the cardholder. This means that if the card gets lost or stolen, the information can be found to get the card back to its original owner. The first six numbers will tell the merchant:
The country the card was issued in
Your address
The card issuer
It's worth pointing out that not all BIN numbers lists provide the merchant with your address. What they may give is your zip/post code. This basically helps the merchant to decide whether they should allow the transaction or not. Obviously it's easier to turn down a transaction if the card is registered to a Mrs Julie Brown, but the person using the card is a male! If the card is being used online then you can't see the customer and you would have to rely upon the country and address information to determine whether it could be the actual owner trying to buy something.
In many cases it is so much safer to cancer a transaction than it is to risk putting it through if there's a doubt about who is making the purchase. After all, you have a business to protect. A good BIN numbers database can help you to save money and keep your business and customers secure. Take a look online at the different BIN numbers databases available. There are quite a few to choose from so you should aim to find one which is reliable and popular. Remember, this is your livelihood that you are trying to protect so it makes sense to take your time to find the best BIN numbers database.