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That time my uncle told me to never use a debit card for online purchases
About 5 years ago my uncle Rick kept saying debit cards are a trap for online shopping. I figured he was just old school and paranoid. Then last March I bought a $120 jacket from a random ad on Instagram and someone drained my checking account within 48 hours. Took the bank 3 weeks to put the money back and I had to borrow from my brother for groceries. Has anyone else found credit cards actually give better fraud protection than debit?
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seanlee10d agoMost Upvoted
Oh man, here we go. Credit cards are just as risky if you're not paying attention, and at least with a debit card you can't dig yourself into a hole of debt before you even realize what hit you.
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fiona_young10d agoMost Upvoted
Exactly. People act like credit cards are some kind of lifesaver but they can wreck you just as fast. I used debit cards for years and never had a single issue because I only spent money I actually had in my account. My brother got his first credit card at 19, went crazy with takeout and clothes, and ended up thousands in debt before he even graduated college. Took him almost five years to pay it off with interest. Debit cards keep your spending in check because the money has to be there first.
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the_holly8d ago
Is it bad that I used to totally be in the "credit cards are safer" camp? Your brother's story really hit home because I watched my cousin do almost the exact same thing. She got a store card at 18 thinking she was being smart building credit, then went wild on furniture and clothes she didn't need. The interest piled up so fast it made my head spin. You're right - with debit you literally cannot spend money that isn't there, and that's a hard stop that credit cards just don't give you.
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