When to Use Virtual Cards?
For complete security, you should use a virtual card every time you make a payment online. A virtual card offers an added layer of protection for your transactions, and you’ll have peace of mind knowing your sensitive financial information is kept safe from hackers and scammers. Here are some situations when using a Privacy virtual card is especially helpful:
When Starting Subscriptions & Trials
Use Privacy for peace of mind when starting a new subscription or a free trial. Forget to cancel? No problem. We’ll automatically decline any unwanted charges.
When Purchasing From a New Merchant
Shopping on a website that you’ve never used before or don’t fully trust? Create a single-use card that automatically closes after the transaction. If the merchant turns out to be fraudulent, our expert support team will manage the case on your behalf.
When Storing Your Card Info For Recurring Payments
Privacy Cards lock to the first merchant they’re used at and can’t be used elsewhere if stolen. In the event of a data breach, you can pause or close a Privacy Card anytime, anywhere without impacting your other cards.
When Managing Your Budget
Privacy lets you easily set and customize card limits, and we’ll automatically decline any transaction that exceeds the limit to keep your spending in check. You can also monitor spending activity in a convenient dashboard on your desktop and mobile phone.
How Privacy Cards Keep You Safe
To understand how Privacy virtual cards keep you safe, it helps to understand how traditional cards put you at risk.
Without Privacy Virtual Cards
When you pay a merchant without using a Privacy Card, you provide your credit or debit card number, CVV, and expiration date. This sensitive data can be intercepted or stolen by third parties, leaving you vulnerable to data breaches and fraudulent card activity.
With Privacy Virtual Cards
Privacy Cards act as a secure layer between your payment information and the merchant. When a Privacy Card is used for a transaction, the merchant only has access to the Privacy Card’s unique card number; your actual financial info is never revealed and is safeguarded from data breaches. The Privacy Card can only be used at that specific merchant and, for even more protection, can be set to automatically close after the first transaction.
Why over 250,000 users choose Privacy
FAQs
A virtual card is a unique 16-digit card number with a CVV code and expiration date that can be generated instantly and used to make purchases online or over the phone. Think of it as a normal credit or debit card, but without the physical plastic card.
A Privacy Card is a virtual card that masks your actual payment information. By using a Privacy Card to check out, you can keep your true financial information private from merchants, malicious third parties, and fraudulent actors. Privacy Cards have additional security features that shield you from fraud and unwarranted transactions.
The FTC reported that more than 2.3 million consumers in the U.S. experienced fraud in 2022, equating to nearly $9 billion in losses. Privacy helps you defend against card theft and fraudulent charges.
Privacy Cards automatically “lock” to the first merchant they’re used at and can never be used anywhere else if they’re stolen or compromised in a data breach. Privacy Cards can also be set for one-time use so they automatically close after a single transaction. These built-in protections have helped our users transact with confidence and save money that would have otherwise been lost in a security breach.
Privacy gives you greater control over your spending. You can set customizable spending limits on cards to track and maintain budgets at specific merchants and block hidden fees. If a transaction attempt goes over the limit, we automatically decline it. You can also easily pause, unpause, and close Privacy Cards at any time to manage subscriptions and avoid being overcharged.
Privacy makes it easy to share secure payment information with trusted friends, family members, or employees. With one click, you can share a Privacy Card instead of having to share and expose your real debit or credit card details. Any cards you share will lock to the first merchant they're used with, and you can still adjust spending limits and close the card at your discretion. The card sharing feature is handy for parents setting an allowance card for their kids or small business owners looking to distribute cards to employees.
Some personal information is required for a mandatory bank verification procedure called Know Your Customer (KYC) that must be conducted before our customers can start using our Privacy virtual cards. This verification process is required to comply with anti-money laundering laws and helps protect against fraud.
Privacy, like other card companies, collects transaction fees called interchange from merchants. We don't, and will never, sell our customers' data.
No. Privacy never conducts a credit pull. Using our Privacy Cards will not have any impact on your credit score, and Privacy Cards will not show up on your credit report. You can read more about this here.
The security of our customers’ personal information and data is critical to everything we do. Privacy is PCI-DSS compliant and is held to the same security standards as a bank. For more information, review our security policies.
Privacy is currently available to US citizens or legal residents with a checking account at a US bank or credit union, and who are 18+ years of age.
Get Started in as Little as Three Minutes
Our basic plan has no fees on domestic transactions* because, like other card companies, we collect transaction fees from merchants.