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My credit card company offers a way to generate a one-time credit card number so that I can safely trial a service and have the monthly charges stop after one m

My credit card company offers a way to generate a one-time credit card number so that I can safely trial a service and have the monthly charges stop after one month. If I want to continue the service, I can provide my real static credit card number.

spraak 9y ago
That's super cool, I'd never heard of that. I'd only known of the benefit of some cryptocurrencies bringing that feature
ddebernardy 9y ago
That's awesome, but it unfortunately won't help when a company charges for a full year in advance like LinkedIn does.
- inferiorhuman 9y ago
  Sure it can. The Bank of America system lets you set an upper credit limit on the temporary numbers. While BofA can ignore it at their discretion, if you set the limit at around $100 I suspect they'd deny a $1400 charge.
- Ixio 9y ago
  Mine also let's you chose a maximum amount that can be charged to the temporary card number. I usually add 10% or 20% extra to the expected amount so that unexpected taxes or shipping costs don't block the whole transaction. I really love the feeling of safety that I get from chosing the max amount, being sure that I won't be overcharged.
  - alextheparrot 9y ago
    I love the points I get from my current cards, but what card is this actually? This sounds like a really killer card I’d use frequently for these use cases.
    - Ixio 9y ago
      The service I was writing about is French: http://www.service-virtualis.com/virtualis/index.htm http://www.service-virtualis.com/virtualis/index.htm So unfortunately if you get points I'm guessing you're from North America and probably won't be able to apply. I haven't searched but there might be such services available to you in a nearer bank.
      - baud147258 9y ago
        Thank you for the link (I'm French too), but my bank (BNP) is not on the list :'(
    - freditup 9y ago
      I've done it with a Citi Double Cash card. It's a nice all around card: 2% cash back, price matching, temporary numbers, etc. Don't take my recommendation blindly though, do your own research first of course! Edit: As a meta-sidenote, it was very difficult for me to write this comment without feeling like it would come across as corporate shilling. I have no connection to Citi and nothing to gain from recommending their card, but there's no way for anybody else to know that, and the issue of selling old accounts is a real one (though don't know about HN specifically). I wonder what the best solutions are to this sort of issue.
      - inferiorhuman 9y ago
        Unfortunately only the shittiest of the shitty banks (BofA and Citi) appear to still offer temp numbers. Amex did for a while but dropped it.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - znoop333 9y ago
      All the citibank cards can generate Virtual Account Numbers with time and dollar limits. I use them frequently.
    - firloop 9y ago
  - mikeash 9y ago
    I found out the hard way that my bank added 10% extra for the reasons you mention. I ended up getting ripped off for a smallish amount on a big transaction because of this.
- bigbugbag 9y ago
  yes it does, the one time use credit card number comes with an amount of money. When I order a 20€ item, I generate a credit card number valid for a single use of 20€. If the merchant tries to charge 19.99€ or 21€ or any different amount it will be rejected (and the merchant may have to pay penalty for payment being rejected).

spraak 9y ago

That's super cool, I'd never heard of that. I'd only known of the benefit of some cryptocurrencies bringing that feature

ddebernardy 9y ago

That's awesome, but it unfortunately won't help when a company charges for a full year in advance like LinkedIn does.

inferiorhuman 9y ago
Sure it can. The Bank of America system lets you set an upper credit limit on the temporary numbers. While BofA can ignore it at their discretion, if you set the limit at around $100 I suspect they'd deny a $1400 charge.
Ixio 9y ago
Mine also let's you chose a maximum amount that can be charged to the temporary card number. I usually add 10% or 20% extra to the expected amount so that unexpected taxes or shipping costs don't block the whole transaction. I really love the feeling of safety that I get from chosing the max amount, being sure that I won't be overcharged.
- alextheparrot 9y ago
  I love the points I get from my current cards, but what card is this actually? This sounds like a really killer card I’d use frequently for these use cases.
  - Ixio 9y ago
    The service I was writing about is French: http://www.service-virtualis.com/virtualis/index.htm http://www.service-virtualis.com/virtualis/index.htm So unfortunately if you get points I'm guessing you're from North America and probably won't be able to apply. I haven't searched but there might be such services available to you in a nearer bank.
    - baud147258 9y ago
      Thank you for the link (I'm French too), but my bank (BNP) is not on the list :'(
  - freditup 9y ago
    I've done it with a Citi Double Cash card. It's a nice all around card: 2% cash back, price matching, temporary numbers, etc. Don't take my recommendation blindly though, do your own research first of course! Edit: As a meta-sidenote, it was very difficult for me to write this comment without feeling like it would come across as corporate shilling. I have no connection to Citi and nothing to gain from recommending their card, but there's no way for anybody else to know that, and the issue of selling old accounts is a real one (though don't know about HN specifically). I wonder what the best solutions are to this sort of issue.
    - inferiorhuman 9y ago
      Unfortunately only the shittiest of the shitty banks (BofA and Citi) appear to still offer temp numbers. Amex did for a while but dropped it.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - znoop333 9y ago
    All the citibank cards can generate Virtual Account Numbers with time and dollar limits. I use them frequently.
  - firloop 9y ago
- mikeash 9y ago
  I found out the hard way that my bank added 10% extra for the reasons you mention. I ended up getting ripped off for a smallish amount on a big transaction because of this.
bigbugbag 9y ago
yes it does, the one time use credit card number comes with an amount of money. When I order a 20€ item, I generate a credit card number valid for a single use of 20€. If the merchant tries to charge 19.99€ or 21€ or any different amount it will be rejected (and the merchant may have to pay penalty for payment being rejected).