---
title: "What is Card fraud? | Benefit Systems"
description: "Card fraud is a payment made without the cardholder's authorisation, for example using stolen card details."
source: "aus dem gebauten HTML abgeleitet"
---
# What is Card fraud?

Card fraud is a payment made without the cardholder’s authorisation, for example using stolen card details.

Also called: Unauthorised transaction.

## How it works #

Liability for unauthorised payments rests with the card issuer once the customer reports them; the holder only shares it in cases of gross negligence. Reporting promptly after noticing is what matters. The route runs through the bank rather than the merchant, and it is a different process from disputing a service that was ordered and never delivered.

## Not to be confused with #

Card fraud is not the same as a chargeback for non-delivery: in a chargeback the payment was authorised and only the goods or service are missing.

## In German #

The German term is Kartenmissbrauch. [German version of this term](/de/glossar/kartenmissbrauch)

## Related terms #

- [Chargeback](/en/glossary/chargeback): A chargeback is the reversal of a card payment through your own bank when a paid-for service was not delivered or not delivered as agreed.
- [Authorized user](/en/glossary/authorized-user): An authorized user is a second person given a card on someone else’s account, whose spending the primary cardholder is liable for.
- [Credit limit](/en/glossary/credit-limit): A credit limit is the maximum balance a card account may carry between statements.

## Articles that use this term #

- [How do you spot card fraud and what do you do next?](/en/knowledge/card-fraud)
- [What is a chargeback and when does it apply?](/en/knowledge/chargeback)
- [When is an authorized user card worth it?](/en/knowledge/authorized-users)
- [hard-pull-vs-soft-pull](/en/knowledge/hard-pull-vs-soft-pull)