Credit Card Guide

What is a CID and Where Can I Find it on my Credit Card?

16 August 2010 by CreditCardsCo™


With new changes being implemented in the way in which credit cards are being used, this has known to become a common question especially amongst newly registered credit card owners. CID, more commonly referred to as a Customer Identification number is a security measure that has been put into place by all credit card companies. Majority of the time when a credit card is used, the person that the card is registered to is known to be available in person to enter the pin code. Seeing as buying habits have change quite drastically over the last couple of years, most people are known to shop online or over the telephone. This is where the customer identification number comes into play.

Seeing as the person is not present when making a purchase over the internet or over the telephone, the credit card company requests that the four digit customer identification number be used as a way to ensure that the card is being used by the card owner themselves. If your card is lost or stolen, it is important that you report your card immediately to ensure that no one uses your credit card to make unauthorized transactions.

The customer identification number is usually located on the back of the credit card right next to the signature strip. Most newly issued credit cards have changed the location slightly but more or less they will always be found on the back of the credit card. The way to distinguish between these digits in comparison to other numbers that you will find on the card is that these specific numbers are not uplifted on the card. They are printed like normal numbers that you would normally see on a piece of paper and they are usually printed in black. Some credit cards have been known to place these numbers just on top of the signature strip. Signing over the number will not void your card.


What is a CID and where can I find it on my Credit Card?
CID Number on Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express credit cards


It is important that you take great care in securing your customer identification number as it can be used quite easily to order things from your name. There are a number of scams surfing the internet where people are trying to get hold of your credit card details by acting to be your merchant provider. If you ever receive an email from your so called bank via email requesting your credit card details including your customer identification number, make sure you do not give them.

No bank will contact you for your details over the internet. If you receive such emails, it is a good idea to contact your bank and report the page to the authorities.

There are a number of prank callers that are also going around in which they pretend to be fake credit agencies trying to help you reduce your debt problems. During this process they end up asking for your credit card details which in actual fact will end up being used for the purpose of fraud. If you ever get such a call it is recommended that you simply hang up and contact your bank through their given customer service number.

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