Shipping Internationally

1. What can I do to lower my risk of fraud when shipping overseas?

Your best line of defense is to know your customer. When selling products internationally, sell only to buyers in countries you trust and use the CVV2 and CID to validate the cards you do accept.

Physical evidence of the cardholder's identity and proof that he or she has physical possession of the card will give you the most protection in an overseas transaction. Ask the buyer to mail or fax you an original signed invoice. Do not ship the merchandise until you receive these documents. Use a shipping option that requires the recipient to sign for the package.

However, ProPay strongly recommends that you only ship product within the U.S., and only to addresses that return matching AVS codes.

 2. What are some indications of potentially fraudulent transactions?

Knowing common indications of potential fraud can help protect you as the merchant. Indications of fraudulent transactions include, but are not limited to, the following:

•    The order is for a large number of the same item.

•    The transaction is for an unusually large amount, much more than you would normally process.

•    The person says it is his or her credit card, but wants the product shipped to a different location including overseas to a friend or family member.

•    The buyer is unwilling to provide you with additional contact information or only allows communications with them through e-mail.

If there is anything suspicious about a particular transaction, you may choose to obtain additional verification from the cardholder, or to simply not process the card. Trust your instincts. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

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3. Are there countries with higher rates of fraud than others?

Several countries seem to have higher rates of fraud than others. These countries are as follows:

•    Indonesia

•    Nigeria

•    Ghana

•    South Africa

•    Netherlands

•    Ukraine

•    Yugoslavia

•    Lithuania

•    Egypt

•    Romania

•    Australia

•    Belarus

•    Bulgaria

•    Turkey

•    Russia

•    Pakistan

•    Malaysia

•    Venezuela

We strongly encourage you not to ship products to any of these countries.

4. Does shipping internationally increase the likeliness of a chargeback?

Yes shipping internationally carries a high risk for chargebacks. To learn more about chargebacks, click here.

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