Credit Card Fraud

Virginia Penal § 18.2-192. Credit card theft.

(1) A person is guilty of credit card or credit card number theft when:

(a) He takes, obtains or withholds a credit card or credit card number from the person, possession, custody or control of another without the cardholder’s consent or who, with knowledge that it has been so taken, obtained or withheld, receives the credit card or credit card number with intent to use it or sell it, or to transfer it to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder; or

(b) He receives a credit card or credit card number that he knows to have been lost, mislaid, or delivered under a mistake as to the identity or address of the cardholder, and who retains possession with intent to use, to sell or to transfer the credit card or credit card number to a person other than the issuer or the cardholder; or

(c) He, not being the issuer, sells a credit card or credit card number or buys a credit card or credit card number from a person other than the issuer; or

(d) He, not being the issuer, during any twelve-month period, receives credit cards or credit card numbers issued in the names of two or more persons which he has reason to know were taken or retained under circumstances which constitute a violation of § 18.2-194 and subdivision (1) (c) of this section.

(2) Credit card or credit card number theft is grand larceny and is punishable as provided in § 18.2-95.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-193. Credit card forgery.

(1) A person is guilty of credit card forgery when:

(a) With intent to defraud a purported issuer, a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, he falsely makes or falsely embosses a purported credit card or utters such a credit card; or

(b) He, not being the cardholder or a person authorized by him, with intent to defraud the issuer, or a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, signs a credit card; or

(c) He, not being the cardholder or a person authorized by him, with intent to defraud the issuer, or a person or organization providing money, goods, services or anything else of value, or any other person, forges a sales draft or cash advance/withdrawal draft, or uses a credit card number of a card of which he is not the cardholder, or utters, or attempts to employ as true, such forged draft knowing it to be forged.

(2) A person falsely makes a credit card when he makes or draws, in whole or in part, a device or instrument which purports to be the credit card of a named issuer but which is not such a credit card because the issuer did not authorize the making or drawing, or alters a credit card which was validly issued.

(3) A person falsely embosses a credit card when, without the authorization of the named issuer, he completes a credit card by adding any of the matter, other than the signature of the cardholder, which an issuer requires to appear on the credit card before it can be used by a cardholder. Conviction of credit card forgery shall be punishable as a Class 5 felony.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-194. Unauthorized possession of two or more signed credit cards or credit card numbers.

When a person, other than the cardholder or a person authorized by him, possesses two or more credit cards which are signed or two or more credit card numbers, such possession shall be prima facie evidence that said cards or credit card numbers were obtained in violation of § 18.2-192.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-195. Credit card fraud; conspiracy; penalties.

(1) A person is guilty of credit card fraud when, with intent to defraud any person, he:

(a) Uses for the purpose of obtaining money, goods, services or anything else of value a credit card or credit card number obtained or retained in violation of § 18.2-192 or a credit card or credit card number which he knows is expired or revoked;

(b) Obtains money, goods, services or anything else of value by representing (i) without the consent of the cardholder that he is the holder of a specified card or credit card number or (ii) that he is the holder of a card or credit card number and such card or credit card number has not in fact been issued;

(c) Obtains control over a credit card or credit card number as security for debt; or

(d) Obtains money from an issuer by use of an unmanned device of the issuer or through a person other than the issuer when he knows that such advance will exceed his available credit with the issuer and any available balances held by the issuer.

(2) A person who is authorized by an issuer to furnish money, goods, services or anything else of value upon presentation of a credit card or credit card number by the cardholder, or any agent or employee of such person, is guilty of a credit card fraud when, with intent to defraud the issuer or the cardholder, he:

(a) Furnishes money, goods, services or anything else of value upon presentation of a credit card or credit card number obtained or retained in violation of § 18.2-192, or a credit card or credit card number which he knows is expired or revoked;

(b) Fails to furnish money, goods, services or anything else of value which he represents or causes to be represented in writing or by any other means to the issuer that he has furnished; or

(c) Remits to an issuer or acquirer a record of a credit card or credit card number transaction which is in excess of the monetary amount authorized by the cardholder.

(3) Conviction of credit card fraud is punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor if the value of all money, goods, services and other things of value furnished in violation of this section, or if the difference between the value of all money, goods, services and anything else of value actually furnished and the value represented to the issuer to have been furnished in violation of this section, does not exceed $200 in any six-month period; conviction of credit card fraud is punishable as a Class 6 felony if such value exceeds $200 in any six-month period.

(4) Any person who conspires, confederates or combines with another, (i) either within or without the Commonwealth to commit credit card fraud within the Commonwealth or (ii) within the Commonwealth to commit credit card fraud within or without the Commonwealth, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-195.1. Credit card factoring.

A. Any authorized person who presents to the issuer or acquirer for payment a credit card or credit card number transaction record of a sale which was not made by such person or his agent or employee, without the express authorization of the acquirer and with intent to defraud the issuer, acquirer or cardholder, is guilty of a Class 5 felony. If such act is done without authorization of the acquirer but without intent to defraud, he shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

B. Any person who, without the express authorization of the acquirer and with intent to defraud the issuer, acquirer or cardholder, employs or otherwise causes an authorized person to remit to an acquirer or issuer a credit card transaction record of sale that was not made by the authorized person is guilty of a Class 5 felony. If such act is done without the authorization of the acquirer but without intent to defraud, he shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

C. As used in this section, “authorized person” means a person authorized by the acquirer to furnish money, goods, services or anything else of value upon presentation of a credit card or credit card number by a cardholder and includes an agent or employee of a person having such authority.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-195.2. Fraudulent application for credit card; penalties.

A. A person shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor if he makes, causes to be made or conspires to make, directly, indirectly or through an agency, any materially false statement in writing concerning the financial condition or means or ability to pay of himself or of any other person for whom he is acting or any firm or corporation in which he is interested or for which he is acting, knowing the statement to be false and intending that it be relied upon for the purpose of procuring a credit card. However, if the statement is made in response to an unrequested written solicitation from the issuer or an agent of the issuer to apply for a credit card, he shall be guilty of a Class 4 misdemeanor.

B. A person who knows that a false statement has been made in writing concerning the financial condition or ability to pay of himself or of any person for whom he is acting or any firm or corporation in which he is interested or for which he is acting and who with intent to defraud, procures a credit card, upon the faith of such false statement, for his own benefit, or for the benefit of the person, firm or corporation in which he is interested or for which he is acting, and obtains by use of the credit card, money, property, services or any thing of value, is guilty of grand larceny if the value of whatever is obtained is $200 or more or petit larceny if the value is less than $200.

C. As used in this section, “in writing” shall include information transmitted by computer, facsimile, e-mail, Internet, or any other electronic medium, and shall not include information transmitted by any such medium by voice transmission.

Virginia Penal  § 18.2-196. Criminal possession of credit card forgery devices.

(1) A person is guilty of criminal possession of credit card forgery devices when:

(a) He is a person other than the cardholder and possesses two or more incomplete credit cards, with intent to complete them without the consent of the issuer; or

(b) He possesses, with knowledge of its character, machinery, plates or any other contrivance designed to reproduce instruments purporting to be credit cards of an issuer who has not consented to the preparation of such credit cards.

(2) A credit card is incomplete if part of the matter, other than the signature of the cardholder, which an issuer requires to appear on the credit card before it can be used by a cardholder, has not yet been stamped, embossed, imprinted or written upon.

Conviction of criminal possession of credit card forgery devices is punishable as a Class 6 felony.