Here are some of the best tips for preventing credit card fraud.

• Keep an eye on your credit card every time that you use it, meaning if you hand it to a cashier watch to see what they are doing with it. You also want to make sure that you get your credit card back as soon as they are done with it and when you get your credit card back from the cashier you want to make sure that it is your credit card and not somebody else's.
  
• You want to be very careful about whom you give your credit card to or even just the credit card number. Never give your credit card out over the phone unless you were the one to start the phone call and you already know that the business you are dealing with is a reputable company. One thing you really want to avoid is giving out your credit card number to verify information. The reason for this is that a legitimate company will not ask for your credit card number over the phone to verify information, the y have other ways of doing that.
  
• Never enter your credit card information on a website that is not a secure site. In order to tell if it is a secure sight you need to look at the web address bar to see if the site begins with "http" or https", the "https" is the best way to tell if the website is secure.
  
• If you receive an email asking you for your credit card information through an email or if they ask you to go to a website to verify your information you want to report those emails because they are phishing scams.
  
• Make sure that you sign your credit cards as soon as you receive them.
  
• Do not write your PIN number down on your credit card or have it written down and stored with your credit card just in case your purse or wallet gets stolen.
  
• Keep a list of all of your credit card account numbers and expiration dates in a secured location. You also want to have the address and phone number of the bank that has issued each credit card. Make sure that you keep the list updated every time that you get a new credit card.
  
• Open your credit card bills as soon as you get them to be sure that there are no bogus charges or charges that you didn't authorize on the bill. You also want to make sure that your receipts match with your credit card statement, which is also called reconciling your statement. If you do find charges that you didn't authorize you want to report this to your credit card company as soon as possible and you want to make sure that you report this in writing.
  

• Make sure that you never sign a blank receipt and if there are empty lines above the total or blank areas where people can add in more money to the charge either write in the number 0 or draw a line through those sections so people can not charge more than what you authorized.
  
• If any of your credit cards are lost or stolen make sure that you report the loss to the credit card issuers as soon as possible. Many companies have 24 hour customer service with a toll free number provided on their statements just so you can report a lost or stolen card as soon as it happens rather than waiting until the next business day. But in addition to the phone call you should also follow through with a letter to each credit card issuer. In the letter you need to include your card number, the date the card first became missing, and the date that you first called and reported the credit card as lost or stolen.
  
• According to U.S. law if you report that your credit card is lost or stolen before the credit card is used the credit card company cannot hold you responsible for any of the subsequent unauthorized charges. But if the there are unauthorized charges before you report your credit card as lost or stolen the most you will owe on each credit card is $50.
  
• Make sure that you check your credit report regularly, especially after you have gone through the trouble of obtaining the best credit card out there and then started using it wisely. This is really important to help ensure that your payments are being reportedly accurately and that any disputes have been handled to your satisfaction.
  
• If your credit card company offers additional security features, such as including your photo on the back or front of the card, make sure you take advantage of those offers. This is a great way to protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft or credit card fraud.

Here are some tips that you need to keep in mind when looking for a credit card.

• Always make sure that you read the fine print. The reason for this is that all of the details for the credit card are going to be included in the fine print, a great example of the details in the fine print would be when the introductory APR will expire and what the new rate will be. But also included in the fine print is going to be information on their late charges, annual fees, interest rate on balance transfers, and if there are grace periods for payment before interest is applied. If you can't get a good picture about the terms of the offer or if the terms are not included you will want to go elsewhere for a credit card.
  

• Shop around when you are looking for a credit card. The interest rates and other terms that apply to credit cards are going to be different depending on what company you are looking and they can actually vary quite a bit from one company to the next. Another thing you want to keep in mind is that there are a variety of different types of credit cards, such as secured credit cards, unsecured credit cards, prepaid credit cards, etc. So you want to make sure you are getting the best deal possible and the right cards for your individual needs and this can only be done by shopping around and comparing the various offers.
  
• Don't ever pay any fees up front to get a credit card. In most cases credit cards do not require you to pay any kind of fees up front to get approved for a credit card, the only type of credit card that will require upfront fees is a secured credit card and prepaid credit cards.
  
• Don't ever pay somebody to help you get a credit card. If you have decent credit then you can get a credit card on your own without needing anybody's help and if you have really bad credit you probably won't ever qualify for one unless it is a prepaid credit card or a secured credit card.
  
• If you are applying for a secured credit card you want to make sure that you understand exactly how your deposit is going to be used. Some secured cards will only use the deposit if you are late for so many months in a row, but others will use the deposit if you are only late a month.
  
• Make sure that when you do use your credit that you are using it wisely. Currently many people are so far in debt because they have taken on more credit than they can actually handle or they have not used their credit wisely. So when using credit cards only apply for as many credit cards as you need, this way you are not tempted to charge more than you can afford.
  
• Make sure that you are paying your credit card bills on time, late payments can cause you to get reported negatively to the credit bureaus, not to mention the fact that the interest rate on your credit card can rise and you will have to pay out more in fees. If you are paying your bills in payments rather than in full each month make sure to pay more than the minimum payment so that you can pay your card off faster and pay less in interest fees in the long run.
  
• You can avoid any kind of interest charges on most credit cards by paying the balance off in full each month. But if you don't think that you are going to be able to pay your balance in full each month you are going to want to look into how finance charges are figured on your credit card bill and then choose the credit card offer that has the lowest interest rate and the best finance charges.
  
• Also keep in mind that if you can't pay your bill in full each month then you might be overspending, which is only going to put you in debt. Rather than just fall further and further into debt simply slow down on how much you are using your credit card the next couple of months. Actually not using the card until you have it paid off is the best bet, this way you don't accumulate more debt.