Account number on checks

edddddddd

I see with the new bill pay service that if a check is used for payment to an institution that has an account number that the account number is printed on the check. For credit cards the account number is the credit card number. This seems like a security risk. Does anyone else see it this way?

UKR

When the credit card company receives your check, how do you expect them to know which account this payment applies to?

If you printed and mailed your own paper check you would normally include a stub from the monthly statement with all your payment information.
Using bill pay, this is not possible, so the check must contain account number information.

If you would like to circumvent this issue, how about authorizing the credit card company to directly debit the payment from your checking account instead? This electronic transfer contains no readable card number.

edddddddd

I understand that there needs to be a way to associate the check with an account, I'm just wondering if there are security issues with publishing a credit card number on a check. I do not want the credit card company to automatically take the money from my checking account. I would not want the credit card company to take my money until are I am certain that all of the charges are legitimate. I'm trying to make this new Quicken Bill Pay work, but I have concerns.

NotACPA

"I'm trying to make this new Quicken Bill Pay work"

The Old QBP worked the same way.  How would you propose to change things?

And, re: legitimate charges ... that's what receiving the statement and reconciling your card account are for.  I've used Direct Debit for 20+ years without incident.

edddddddd

Are you certain that the old QBP put account numbers on the checks? When I receive a check, such as a tax refund check, I receive a check that is attached by a performation to an amount of paper that explains the purpose of the check. The check is then torn away at the performation and cashed.

NotACPA

How does printing the account info on the stub of paper significantly differ from printing it on the check?

Both can be intercepted.  Both can be read by anyone who gets their hands on the document. And do you throw away that stub ... or file it somewhere?

edddddddd

The people at the credit card company would be the only people who could see the information on the stub. The information on the check could be seen by I don't know who. That's why I asked the question. Is it a security risk to put your credit card number on a check?

GeoffG

An account number printed on anything is meaningless unless you are also providing the expiration date and CV code. Without this additional information, a charge cannot be processed.

edddddddd

Thanks GeoffG. I think that explains it.