15 Signs of Credit Card Fraud for Merchants (With Examples)

Credit card fraud has become a serious problem for businesses. While a consumer can simply contact the credit card company, dispute the charge, and get their money back, merchants are often left holding the bag—forced to eat all costs associated with the sale, plus penalties. 

In 2025, it’s projected that businesses will lose $12.5 billion from credit card fraud in the US alone. And roughly half of consumers believe it’s the merchant’s job to protect them from fraud.

To help you fight fraud, I’ve identified the top 15 signs of a fraudulent transaction. The first 12 are specific to online fraud (since 65% of fraud losses come from card-not-present sales), and the final three focus on in-person credit card fraud. 

1. Same Address Used for Multiple Cards

Lots of people obviously have more than one credit card. So this isn’t always a red flag. 

But if you’re seeing multiple orders being shipped to the same address, all with different credit cards, then it could be a sign of credit card fraud.

If this happens, pay close attention to the names on the cards. If you’re seeing the same name or at least the same last name, it’s probably fine. But if all of the names are different, there’s a good chance someone is using stolen credit cards to order as much as possible to one address.

2. Multiple Shipping Addresses for the Same Card

Conversely, it could be suspicious if one card is being used for multiple shipping addresses. This might just be someone ordering gifts for friends or family, which is totally normal.

But if the recipient’s name is the same and big orders are going to ten different addresses, it’s definitely suspicious. Most people don’t have ten different homes, and if they did, they probably don’t want packages delivered to all ten at the same time. 

3. Irregular Consecutive Transactions

The term “irregular” obviously varies by business. But for example, let’s say you sell clothes online, and the average order ranges from $150 to $250. 

Every now and then, you get a big order for $500 or $600—maybe once a week or twice a week during the holiday season.

If you start getting four or five consecutive orders for $2,000 or $3,000 each, you should look at those transactions closely before fulfilling and shipping anything. 

4. Multiple Orders With Similar Card Numbers

This is almost always a sign of credit card fraud.

If you’re getting several orders in a row where the first 12 digits are the same and the last four digits just have a slight change, it’s likely someone is attempting combinations after a test transaction went through. 

That’s why it’s so important to capture other card details when you’re processing transactions—like names, CVV2, and billing zip codes. The fraudster likely can’t guess this information if they’re just testing card number combinations. 

5. Unusual Large Orders

Let’s say you’re selling electronics online, and the most expensive item on your website is a 98-inch smart TV. 

You sell one occasionally, but nobody ever buys more than one of your smaller and cheaper TVs in the same order.

If someone tries to buy 15 of your 98-inch TVs, double-check that it’s legit before you process anything. This is definitely unusual behavior.

6. Different Cards Used From the Same IP Address

An IP address is a unique number that identifies a specific device or network connected to the internet. 

So it’s really suspicious if you get five orders from the same IP address, purchased with five different cards. 

It’s highly unlikely that five different people just took turns using the same computer or smartphone to order from your website. It’s much more likely that a fraudster is using the same device to purchase items with five stolen cards. 

7. Fake Email Address

If an email address is clearly fake, you should reject the transaction immediately. 

Sometimes this can be an honest mistake, like entering “gmal” instead of “gmail” when submitting the form. But if they are using something random like fj45aaa_qyy88$44@apple.com, then it’s obviously fake, and you can reject it. 

8. Generic, Fake, or Suspicious Name Used

John Joe, Jane Doe, Seymour Buttts—you get the idea. 

Yes, there are regular people out there named Brad Pitt and Michael Jordan who just want to buy stuff online like everyone else. But if you’re seeing this used in combination with another red flag, you may want to hold off before processing that transaction. 

9. Larger Orders Shipped Internationally

If you usually sell three or four items in transaction and 99% of orders are purchased in the US, you should definitely scrutinize orders with 40 items shipped to Somalia, Brazil, and Romania—especially if you’re not targeting customers in those countries and they’re being paid for with a US-issued credit card. 

10. Multiple Skews of the Same Product Ordered

Is it possible that someone wants the same shirt in two or three different colors? Of course.

However, it’s unlikely that they want the same shirt, in ten colors, and each color in size XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL. 

The only time this makes sense is it’s a B2B transaction and you’re selling items at wholesale prices. But if you sell B2C and each shirt retails for $78, it’s unlikely this buyer is planning to resell them at a higher price. 

11. Wrong Expiration Date Entered on Multiple Attempts

This happens all the time, and it’s normally an honest mistake. I’ve even done this myself when ordering something online—accidentally putting 5/24 as the expiration date instead of 5/25. 

But if you’re getting three or four attempts in a row with all different dates (5/24, 5/25, 5/26, 6/24, 6/25, 6/26, etc.), then the person probably doesn’t have access to the card and is just guessing. 

12. Lots of Small “Test” Transactions

It’s common for scammers to test that a card is still active and that a website won’t reject the transaction before placing a large order.

So if you’re getting multiple transactions for just $5 or $6, it could be a sign that a scammer is testing a bunch of cards on your site. If these go through, they’ll likely try and use those same cards to purchase big-ticket items. 

13. Physical Problems With the Actual Card

New technology definitely makes it harder for fraudsters to use fake credits in person. But it’s not impossible.

One common scam involves using a real card number on a fake or duplicate card. So if the card won’t get accepted by the terminal, the scammer hopes that the cashier just manually enters the card number. 

Before doing this, the card should be assessed for obvious signs of physical problems, such as:

• Numbers and letters that aren’t aligned.
• Missing chip or magnetic strip.
• The card appears to have been re-embossed or laminated. 
• Characters on the card clearly have different sizes, styles, and heights. 
• The signature panel looks like it’s been altered or replaced. 
• The card clearly or feels fake.

If you’re on the fence, it’s safer to just ask for another payment method instead of processing a fraudulent sale. 

14. Customer’s Behavior is Suspicious

I don’t expect you or your employees to be trained detectives. Trying to guess if someone is being deceptive isn’t easy—and it’s possible that someone could be showing “suspicious” traits for perfectly legitimate transactions with their own credit card.

That said, these are some common behaviors that people show when committing credit card fraud in person:

• They’re clearly wearing a disguise. 
• They’re showing signs of nervousness and anxiety, or they’re easily agitated and rushed.
• It seems like they’re trying to distract you.
• The same customer comes back multiple times in the day to repurchase similar items.
• They’re buying an unusually high number of your most expensive items.
• Everything in their cart just seems to be thrown in randomly, without worrying about size or price. 
• The customer warns you about potential problems with their credit card before you ask for it. 
• They can’t produce an ID that matches the name on the card.

Again, in isolation, these aren’t automatically a sign of fraud. But if they’re exhibiting a combination of these suspicious behaviors, they could be attempting to use a stolen credit card to purchase items. 

15. Purchasing Lots of Weird Items That Can Easily Be Resold

Similar to the other signs of in-store credit card fraud, this one is a judgment call. Unless you’re a wholesaler or clearly selling to a business buyer, it’s probably not normal if someone fills their cart with tons of items like:

• Cosmetics
• Jewelry
• Electronics
• Men’s clothing and women’s clothing
• Diapers of all sizes

It’s even more of a red flag if large multiples of these types of items are all in the same cart. 

Additional Reading: Who Pays for Credit Card Fraud?