Credit card giants Visa and MasterCard have been successful in their request to increase the limit on UK contactless credit and debit cards from £10 to £15. At the same time it has been revealed that an estimated one in seven of the UK population will have a contactless card by the end of 2010 as the phenomenon continues to grow in popularity.

However, to some people it seems rather bizarre that we are seeing an increase in the use of contactless credit cards and debit cards, which require no PIN or signature to complete payment, at a time when credit card fraud in the UK continues to rise. Identity theft has been a problem in the UK, and around the world, for some time although lately new areas of concern have arisen with increased dependence upon the Internet.

As contactless credit and debit cards become more popular it will be interesting to see whether instances of fraud and criminal activity increase in this particular area. So far the system has proved to be relatively secure and by limiting individual transactions to no more than £15 any potential fraudulent activity has been limited. However, will the criminal fraternity find some way to hack into the system and gain access to bank accounts?

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