Dishonest consumers are employing a credit card crime that confounds usual verification methods, fraud protection firm Early Warning warns.

The latest scam, described as customer denial fraud, involves credit card holders denying any involvement for purchases they have made as soon as their credit card statement arrives and after goods have been delivered. Internet or other fraud insurance that most companies provide is then invoked, with the result that the value of the order is charged back to the merchant - who ends up footing the bill.

Early Warning runs an online fraud protection system for merchants, called Card Aware, that has allowed it to spot what its identified as a growing crime. Card Aware allows pattern of the frauds to be identified which might otherwise have been perceived as isolated incidents.

Instances of customer denial fraud are been circulated to Card Aware members as they are reported, so on-line merchants know which cards to avoid – even if everything else is in order. Cross-referencing is possible by email address, IP address, delivery postcode and name. ®