Identity Theft and VISA giftcards

A recent news article shows another way to use a stolen credit card: write the magstripe to a gift card that won't be questioned when it is processed. In this case, the cards were used to purchase cigarettes, which are difficult to trace. The criminals' only mistake was returning to the place that they purchased the cigarettes to make a second transaction.

With magstripe encoders a commodity item, this is an easy way to avoid questions about a name not matching on a card. Small transactions in stores without cameras would make for a very difficult to trace crime.