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Under federal law, all businesses are required to truncate credit and debit card information on receipts. Failing to do so may entitle consumers to compensation under the FACTA Act.
Truncation is the omission of certain digits of a credit card number from a printed receipt, or the replacement of those digits with symbols such as * or #. These symbols replace important numbers in computer systems and on receipts. The truncation process protects sensitive consumer information from those who would use it for wrongdoing.
“Credit card numbers on sales receipts are a ‘golden ticket’ for fraudsters and identity thieves,” writes the Federal Trade Commission on their truncation guidance page. “Savvy businesses appreciate the importance of protecting their customers — and themselves — from credit card crime.”
Truncation is a required process under the Fair and Accurate Transactions Act (FACTA). FACTA was passed by Congress in 2003 as an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act in order to better protect consumers from identity theft and fraud, and the law has been in full effect since 2006. FACTA specifically states “no person that accepts credit cards or debit cards for the transaction of business shall print more than the last 5 digits of the card number or the expiration date upon any receipt provided to the cardholder at the point of the sale or transaction.”
Under FACTA rules, consumers are also allowed free access to their own credit reports, and there is now a nationwide alert system.
FACTA is a federal law, and therefore applies across all 50 states. However, some individual states have created their own credit card receipt laws as well.
How to Truncate
The following examples are not correct ways to truncate credit card or debit card numbers:
- 11** **** **** 4444
- **** **22 **** 4444
- **** **** **33 ****
The correct way to truncate important credit and debit information may look like the following:
- ACCT: ***********12345
In many cases, you may see that a card number is printed with only the last four digits showing, like this:
- **** **** **** 1234
As in this case, fewer than five digits of your card number may be shown, as long as those digits come at the end of the card number.
Expiration dates should be completely censored, and if they show up at all, should look something like this:
- **/**
- ****
Although truncation is a relatively simple process, using outdated or inaccurate software and equipment may result in the exposure of credit card numbers. These errors are likely violations of federal law and may entitle consumers to seek compensation from the business that issues the receipts.
Before the FACTA Act was signed into law, businesses were not limited in which numbers they could include on receipts. This meant that if a perpetrator had multiple receipts which included information from a single credit or debit card, they were more likely to piece together the card numbers and successfully commit fraud. However, through truncation and FACTA regulations, current consumer information is far more secure.
“Several details of the law are worth noting: It applies only to electronically printed receipts, not to handwritten or imprinted ones. And it applies only to receipts you give your customer at point of sale, not to any transaction record you retain,” writes the FTC. “Be aware, however, that when you keep your customers’ personal information — including account data — you have an obligation to keep it safe.”
Violations of the FACTA Act, whether they be accidental, willful, or negligent, are illegal and may lead to an award of statutory damages. The high stakes for businesses have led to many FACTA settlements that benefit many affected consumers. Consumers who have had their information improperly printed on a receipt may be eligible to file a FACTA lawsuit and recover damages for the violations.
Filing a FACTA Lawsuit
If you have been affected by FACTA violations, you may be able to report the violation and receive an award. Reporting violations helps to enforce FACTA, since any violation you see reflected on your own receipt may have been duplicated on hundreds or even thousands of other customers’ receipts.
Check the credit or debit card numbers and the expiration dates on your receipts to see if they are properly truncated, following FACTA guidelines. If your receipt has a FACTA violation, you may be able to receive a FACTA award of up to $1,000 per violation. Be sure that you keep any relevant receipts as evidence.
Free Store Receipt Class Action Lawsuit Investigation
If you have received a receipt with either type of violation in Florida, Georgia or Alabama you may be eligible to join a free FACTA debit/credit card receipt class action lawsuit investigation against merchants who don’t take appropriate measures to protect your financial information.
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