Protecting customer’s data
12 Nov, 2007 12:00 PM
Call Center Customers, Call Center Industry 
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As soon as I got home today from my shift, I immediately turned on the PC and changed my email passwords. I don’t know exactly what made me do this but somehow, I feel obligated to. I have been using that password in all my web accounts and so once it becomes known to others, they could easily access those accounts.
Although I am a technical support rep for a brand of computers, we have been gathering credit card information from consumers when we need to, like purchase of some computer items. I have been using the computer’s notepad to gather the CC info so that corrections could be easily made once the customer gives a wrong entry. This is so unlike the previous company where I worked more than a year ago. We always gather credit card information from customers who want to purchase items they saw on TV, newspaper or heard from the radio. We just use the the call center’s shopping cart system, without any notepad, either virtual or actual.
The notepad which contains my logs everyday has the credit card information. I send the logs every week to my After reading the news that a call center representative in Chicago was charged of identity theft for using the credit card of at least four customers. This is on top of the widely circulated email/news article on a Filipino agent who was sentenced for a tw-year imprisonment. This followed after he was found guilty by the Philippine court of making online purchases amounting to $ 655.19. The goods were then sent to the former Sitel agent’s address.
Perhaps this is the reason customers ask where an agent is located at. Asking the name and the location of the agent somehow shows a mistrust and a disgust by the customer. They are sometimes suspicious of the person taking their financial information. They have every right to do so. Identity fraud in the US now amount to $ 49.3 billion. Some call centers are very strict on the English accent of the agents so that they can be heard as someone speaking in the mainland.
The reason for sending my logs to my personal email is for me to review the troubleshooting steps I have been making. Since some support websites are blocked in the office, it would be better if I will do some research on my own.
Prevention is better than cure. I don’t want to blame myself for being so careless if ever those credit card information will be stolen. The best thing to do perhaps would be to delete them.
