While doing online shopping, our main concern is the safety about the data we share, like our credit/debit cards details. Answer to this concern is “Virtual Cards”. Today in India few Banks offer such cards in different name.
Virtual credit card is also called e-card, is mainly created for for your online purchase. So you can’t use this card for your offline purchase. Let us see it’s features.
- Compare to your credit/debit card online shopping is safer. Because using this virtual credit card, you are not sharing your underlying credit/debit card details to merchant.
- Card is valid only for limited period, which is usually in terms of hours.
- Card creation is only from authorized user.
- Card can be created from small amount like Rs.100 to Rs.50,000.
- Customers having internet banking can easily create this card.
- You are not sharing your Bank Acnt. No., mobile no., email address while doing purchasing with your vendors or merchant.
- It is only used one time. It can’t be reused again.
- You can create virtual card limit yourself.
- Amount will be debited from your credit/debit card once the successful transaction from your virtual card.
- You can create any number of virtual cards subject to the amount availability in your underlying account.
- Suppose you created virtual card for Rs.5,000 and you used for Rs.2,500 then as I said above this card is only used once. So you can’t use this card once again. But the remaining amount will be credited back to your underlying card.
- This is usually a free service. But better to check your concerned bank before creating.
- You can’t withdraw cash from this card.
Banks offer such e-cards are SBI-Virtual Card, ICICI VCC, HDFC NetSafe, Â and Kotak netc@rd.