ShopSafe Rules
I got my super-awesome, interest-free MBNA Platinum WorldPoints credit card about 3 years ago. As soon as I got it, I started exploring the online banking site that came with it. Though most features I found were pretty standard (pay bills, transfer balances, etc), one stood out. MBNA calls it ShopSafe.
Basically, they give the account holder the ability to generate a temporary alias credit card number for online purchases (more info). This is done to enhance security and give one the warm and fuzzy feeling when purchasing online.
They make it real easy – just enter the interval and the spending limit, and hit Create Number.
You can then use it just like a regular credit card without worrying about yet another online merchant having your information on their books.
You may also work with old ShopSafe numbers and view active.
So how did I abuse the system?
A while back, when NetFlix was still a novelty, I used these temporary numbers in conjunction with temporary emails that ended with @howtobepoor.com to create several NetFlix accounts, all on the free 2-week trial offer. Because I timed temporary credit card number creation just right (I created a new number every 2 weeks), at any given time I had at least one number that expired in 2 weeks. I gave that number to NetFlix, they gave me the free trial, I got the DVDs, in two weeks the number expired, and my account got canceled without me actually calling them. Wash, rinse, repeat … about 5 times.
All of this could have been prevented if the NetFlix developers used address as a primary key for their tables, instead of credit card numbers.
Needless to say, I ran out of hard drive space from copying movies real quick, but that’s a separate story.
So what are the goods and the bads of ShopSafe?
- Good – You are not actually using your credit card number, so you don’t worry about fraud as much.
- Good – Even if someone jacks the number, they can only spend up to the pre-set limit.
- Good – ShopSafe is a FLASH app, not a web page, which makes the details of the transaction harder to extract.
- Bad – Some vendors will ask you about the credit card number you’ve used to a particular transaction. If you don’t have your ShopSafe number handy, it’s a 10 minute scramble.
- Bad – If you buy a lot of stuff, you’ll need to build a system just to keep track of your numbers.
I’ve used this nifty feature for several years now, and never had a problem. Oh yeah, MBNA is now owned by the Bank of America. I got accounts in both, and the transition has been fairly smooth.
This is pretty cool. I’ve heard about it before, but I’m surprised that not that many banks are catching on to this feature.
In today’s world of constant online scams and identity fraud, this feature would be great to use for limit spending. What I used to use is a PayPal credit card that I got years ago. My PayPal account always had a low amount of money specifically for this purpose. It would help me not spend a lot and also if someone DID get my credit card #, they wouldn’t steal too much.
Comment by Dimitry — October 28, 2006 @ 11:56 am
Citibank has this feature also. They call theirs – if it can be considered a special name – “Virtual Account Numbers”. I use it quite a bit especially with sites I’m not so sure about when it comes to security/reputation.
Comment by N.C — October 28, 2006 @ 1:05 pm
B of A has seriously messed up my MBNA account. The transition hasn’t been smooth for everyone.
Will they continue to offer this after the merger is over?
Comment by Lawrence — October 28, 2006 @ 10:52 pm
So far it looks like everything’s the same on MBNA site, just a different layout. I think there are a few annoying quirks about the new site, but I’ll give them some time.
Comment by How To Be Poor — October 29, 2006 @ 2:34 pm
I’ve used the Citibank Virtual Account Number also. I’ve used both the online flash version as well as the download software. So far I’ve had good experience with it. I use it when I purchase stuff online from sites I’m a little leery about. I give MBNA a try as well.
Comment by Savvy Samurai — October 31, 2006 @ 11:41 am
I love Shop Safe and have been using it for a few years now. But with this merger, I CANNOT find anything about ShopSafe on the BOA website. What’s up with that? I can log into my SS account, but it says my account is ineligible and to call cust. svc. phone #. When I call, they tell me to call BOA. I’m very disappointed that I cannot access my account and my active numbers. It’s a great feature. I hope they bring it back or I’ll try the Citibank.
Comment by Teresa — November 2, 2006 @ 7:58 pm
I’ve used ShopSafe for a few years very successfully. Apparently through MBNA? Don’t know/didn’t care. Now, they say I’m locked out and should go to NetAccess online.
I went to BofA site and finally found the ShopSafe info, but I don’t have a credit card from BofA, so I guess I move to my CitiBank card? Big pain.
Comment by Megan — November 12, 2007 @ 6:50 pm
Since it became BOA, I’ve had nothing but problems with ShopSafe. Tried it numerous times and each time got the message “credit card invalid.” BOA does not seem to care about it or to be supporting it.
Comment by mallory — May 22, 2008 @ 5:59 pm
Shop Safe works great!!! Used it for a mail order item from an out-of-state store. It worked, even though they are a real store, not an online merchant!
June, 2008
Comment by Shop Safe Lover — June 17, 2008 @ 1:58 pm
Lately, ShopSafe has been overlaying a notification message that my Adobe Flash Player is Version 1 and I need to download a later version. There are 2 problems: I have Version 10, but the overlay message can’t differentiate between 1 and 10. Second, the overlaying message covers the first 4 or 5 active numbers and can’t be moved or removed no matter what. No one at BOA accepts responsibility for this screw-up and no one will fix it.
Comment by hitchicken — November 18, 2008 @ 2:44 pm
Weird … works ok for me with whatever the current version is …
Comment by How To Be Poor — November 18, 2008 @ 4:46 pm
I’m having the same problem as hitchicken with ShopSafe and inaccurate message about incorrect Adobe Flash version. Its made ShopSafe very difficult to use. This problem has been know by BofA for over a month but as of yesterday they still don’t know when it will be fixed. Sheesh!
Comment by Dee Lync — November 25, 2008 @ 10:04 am
ShopSafe is not compatible with FireFox. Install the IE Tab add-on and specify the ShopSafe URL to use the IE rendering engine.
Comment by Ed — November 25, 2008 @ 10:19 am
I have discovered a workaround to the overlay message about needing to download a later version of Adobe Flash player. I log on to the FIA Card services website (www.ibsnetaccess.com) and launch ShopSafe from there. It works without the overlay message. Go figure.
Comment by Donna Williamson — December 2, 2008 @ 12:27 pm
Donna, do you have another account directly with FIA Card Services? When I try to register at the FIA site and enter my MBNA card number (which has been moved to BofA but is still serviced by FIA), it comes back with “The information you provided does not match our records. Please review your entry and try again.” Any help would be appreciated.
Comment by GJ — December 3, 2008 @ 7:39 pm
GJ, my account with FIA Card Services is thru Schwab and I had no problem registering 2 years ago. You might try calling FIA’s customer service number, 800-655-1491, and see if someone there can help. Good luck!
Comment by Donna Williamson — December 5, 2008 @ 6:17 pm
Update: Adobe Flash Player 10 is the problem. I uninstalled 10 and re-installed version 9, available at Adobe website:
http://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/downloads.html
Now Shop Safe works perfectly.
Comment by Donna Williamson — December 22, 2008 @ 10:46 am
beozkuoa…
beozkuoa…
Trackback by beozkuoa — January 2, 2009 @ 1:23 pm
I’m also having this ShopSafe flashplayer issue. Any real fix, other than going backward?
Comment by miadlor — February 4, 2009 @ 4:56 pm
Guess their programmers never expected a 2-digit version of Flash — kinda like ‘any years above 1999′.
I’ve made several complaints — always the same lame answer. Still Busted.
Comment by rumplestiltskin — February 18, 2009 @ 7:57 am
See the thread below. There’s a download link in the thread that points to mbnashopsafe.com. Installed and working.
http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/finance/724417
Comment by Dougie — April 1, 2009 @ 3:53 pm
Quoting Ed: “ShopSafe is not compatible with FireFox. Install the IE Tab add-on and specify the ShopSafe URL to use the IE rendering engine.”
That’s just not true. Shopsafe works fine in Firefox. Also, I would never use IE to log into any account requiring a password, and certainly not one that involves my money. IE is not safe.
“Friends don’t let friends use Internet Explorer.”
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