posted on August 20, 2001 06:23:59 AM new
Thank you for posting this - it highlights the fact that concerns about international credit card transactions are not limited to US sellers.
Talk to the bank who will be handling your merchant account. In the US, some banks will treat a dated faxed signature AND faxed copies of both sides of the credit card (you need both) the same as a "card present" transaction. Even if your bank doesn't do this, requiring additional information will often discourage people trying to commit fraud - they don't want to leave a "trail".
If you process credit cards online, you can set up a system where "authorization" and "capture" are separate. With this system, your merchant account bank will authorize the charge, verifying that the amount is available. You then look over the transaction, and if you decide you want to accept it, "capture" the funds.
For larger sales, as a merchant account holder you will be able to call the cardholders' bank to verify for yourself the address and that the money is available.
