1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182 
PLAYING YOUR CARDS RIGHT
Page 47
Page 48
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
ks if the price of fuel wasn't enough to dive you mad it seems that some
Deople want to get their hands on your fuel — for free. Julian Nines ooks at the fuel card security systems that prevent unauthorised spending.
With losses of over £400m in 2003 card crime is big business. And while fuel card fraud accounts for i small percentage of the total it represents a ;ignificant threat to the haulage industry. Andrew Brown, fraud manager for Shell bets. says: "Fuel card fraud is moving to new evels of technology. The biggest threat at the noment does not come from internal misuse )ut from skimmed and copied cards." ikimrning involves the use of cloned cards hat have been printed, embossed or encoded vithout permission from the issuer, or the use yi valid cards that have been altered or .ecoded. It normally occurs at retail outlets aich as petrol stations where a corrupt ;mployee skims a customer's card before landing it back, then sells the data to the nofessional counterfeiters.
The problem has become so serious that a bet card fraud intelligence unit was set up in '003 in conjunction with the European Police 2ommission, E,uropol. Brown, who was ictively involved in this process, says: 'Though advances have been made in ;ecurity, criminals are always trying to crack new technology.The methods used to defraud credit cards tend to transfer over to fuel cards as the principles are the same," To combat the problem the card companies have started to introduce new technology such as 'chip and PIN'. This combines two security features.The first is a microchip on the card that stores data more securely than the current magnetic strip so it's much harder to skim.The second is the four-digit PIN (personal identification number), which is much more difficult to copy than a signature.
Preparing for identity theft
But as chip and PIN becomes more common the banking industry is bracing itself for an increase in 'identity theft', which accounted for losses of129.7m in 2003.This involves using fraudulently obtained personal information to open or access card accounts in someone else's name.
Application fraud involves using stolen or false documents to open an account in someone else's name; account take-over involves taking over another person's account after gathering personal information about the intended victim.The criminal then contacts the card issuer to ask for mail to be redirected to a new address Fortunately, chip and PIN technology offers customised security features that limit the potential misuse of the card. For example, fleet operators can set daily limits on the amount of fuel that can be bought with each card. Fuel cards can also be 'locked out' at specific times of the day or even certain days of the week.
These rules can be changed by the card supplier, allowing operators to tailor card use to their needs. Vehicle registration number and driver identity checks further I reduce the risk of external misuse.
Other safeguards include monitoring card usage by the card issuer on a daily basis with 'exception reports' highlighting any increased usage on individual cards or abnormally large transactions.
Fuel card companies can also supply weekly reports detailing card usage via post or e-mail.
Operators who want to monitor their transactions on a more frequent basis can access their accounts online 24/7.As well as combating fraud, this data can be used to compare the fuel consumption of individual vehicles in the fleet, which can highlight leadfooted drivers or vehicles in need of tuning.
Protect cards from theft
But all this technology will be useless if steps are not taken to stop cards falling into the wrong hands. Key Fuels has recently expanded its operation in the UK and now has over 1,400 fuelling sites. Key's Hugh Morgan says: "You'd be surprised how many careless mistakes are made by drivers Fuel cards should be treated like credit cards as the implications for loss of money are the same." He stresses that PiNs should be memorised or kept separate from fuel cards in case of theft If a fuel card is stolen the driver should be aware of the correct procedure to follow to minimise the risk of subsequent abuse.
Lee Everett, marketing manager for Fuelserv. explains: "Card holders should advise their issuer immediately. Contact details should always be to hand, and not just in the wallet as this may be stolen as well. If fuel is needed we can then provide clearance at dedicated sites to keep them on the road."
Depending on the size of the operation, 'internal yard card' systems security could improve security. By having bunkered fuel and a fuelling station on-site operators can readily monitor fuel usage and consumption by vehicle, driver or both and they can carry out stock reconciliation exercises using transactions polled by the card reader. Using the card reader to manage access to bunkered fuel also matches the security benefits available with on-the-road card usage.
Some card readers can be used with commercial fuel cards. This allows data to be merged with that of other suppliers to provide a complete picture of a fleet's fuel use —once again, the data can be transferred to a computer allowing 24/7 monitoring and reporting.
All equipment including tanks, pumps and card readers can be supplied by companies such asTriscan. Buyers can specify card readers which are fully chip and PIN enabled, or they can order hybrid terminals which can also accept conventional magnetic strip cards. Brown says:"Monitoring fuel use is an ongoing process for both the card issuer and the operator.To get the most suitable package you should engage with your supplier." • CONTACTS Morgan Fuels: 02830 848365 Shell Fuels: www.euroshell.com Fuelserv: 01473 466666 Triscan: 01254 686048 CH Jones: www.chjones.co.uk