Properly Dispose of Credit Cards

It’s not everyday that you have to dispose of a credit card for whatever reason (expiry, cancellation, fraud, etc) but knowing how to dispose of one properly is worth knowing. You used to be able to get away with chopping up a credit card with scissors and throwing it in the bin but it can’t hurt to take some extra precautions particularly if you’re rather paranoid.

  1. Cut up the or file down the card such that the card details on it are difficult to put back together,
  2. File away the magnetic strip on the back of the card,
  3. If your card has an embedded chip, chop that up or file it down as well to prevent it from being read,
  4. Dispose of the card in separate bins to prevent someone from being able to reconstruct the card (yes, people can and will do that if they are desperate).

Managing identity theft will be an ongoing challenge as transactions increasingly move to electronic methods so maintaining security from end to end is vital to prevent financial loss and/or inconvenience.

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