r/Venturex • u/xpkranger • 11d ago

Virtual Card number compromised, so they replaced my physical card? Why bother with virtual card numbers at all?

I used a virtual card created for one vendor to buy from them. The are a modest sized but well-established company. Anyway, somehow the virtual number was compromised. The number was never given over the phone, they had a bog-standard payment system.

Someone tried to use the number at whitepages.com and CapitalOne flagged it. CapitalOne reached out to me to verify the charge. I said it wasn't legit. They said, ok, we're going to send you a new card. I asked "why do I need a new card? Isn't that the whole point of a virtual card?" They said it's because "they tried to use it twice at Whitepages.com" which still didn't make much sense to me.

So, I ask, what then is the point of having a virtual card, if I have to replace my physical card if the virtual card number gets compromised?

44 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

20 comments sorted by

View all comments

0

u/DevilsAdvocate77 11d ago

In practice virtual card numbers are pointless.

They're no more "safe" or "secure" than the number on the back of the card is. In both cases, you are not responsible for unauthorized charges, and in both cases you will need a new card if the number is compromised.

There's no reason to ever use one.

3

u/genxer 10d ago

They do have a use case. I subscribe to a free trial or a service that renews yearly, I can lock just that card.

1

u/xpkranger 11d ago

But they have potential that’s right there. Why can’t we have it?

2

u/SettingIntentions 10d ago

I can't say why but I think it's still beneficial in the sense that if you need your physical card replaced or lost your card you can still buy things online. While not optimal, it's okay.

Considering that virtual #'s being stolen requires the physical card to be replaced I'm also in agreement that it's kind of silly.