Over the past couple of weeks I have discovered that someone has compromised (been using) two of my bank debit cards. I have contacted both institutions and have started fraud actions and will be covered for any unauthorized use. This however, this does not answer as to how some one could have gained access to my card numbers. Both cards are seldom used and have never been out of my pocession and I have the only cards. I have, in Microsoft Word a document with all my card numbers, instutution address and phone # etc saved on my hard drive. I have Net Defence firewall.Is it possible for a hacker to gain access to my computer without my knowledge and access this word document? My computer is on and I am on line much of the time.Thanks,Gator631 person needs an answerI do too

Do you have a router or do you connect directly to a modem (dial-up/DSL/cable)?If you have a router, is it wireless? If it is wireless, are you using WPA2 or WPA encryption?Unless you are using a wireless router without any encryption (or perhaps WEP encryption), it's unlikely that your cards were compromised by accessing your computer. Even then, it's far more likely that when you used them (seldom or not) someone "skimmed" the number or simply copied the number and watched you enter the the PIN (or just guessed it).See Credit Card Fraud andSkimming .If it will put your mind at ease, encrypt your Word document. It's been a while since I've looked into what's available for free, but I understand thatAxcrypt is pretty good. I wouldn't use the Windows Encrypting File System unless you first read and thoroughly understand theBest Practices document. If you do use some encryption software, be absolutely certain that you have a method to decrypt things that is stored completely separate from your computer.

A single mistake could cause your data come to hacker , make sure your system is always update and firewall is on and also check your Anti-Virus and make sure it is update. Also run full scan with :http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htmAnd see what are the threats , if any and make sure that you always use Anti-Virus and update it.There are several thing that might lead to this that, may be while you were away someone see it in your PC or any other reason.Make sure your Windows and other software are genuine.

If you have at any time been hit by malware, a keystroke-logger may well have been installed, and this may be transmitting any passwords you type to a hacker. Do a thorough scan with Malwarebytes' free scanner, and investigate the characteristics of any malware found. If I were at all unsure in such a situation, I would be inclined to 'flatten' the computer (save any data needed and then format the disk) and start afresh with a clean install of Windows. To do this you will of course need a Windows CD and the drivers for your hardware. Either that, or buy a new disk and use this to reinstall, that way you dont have to flatten the old install rightaway. Just don't run any software from the old disk or you may reinfect your new one.Incidentally, there are several free 'password-safe' programs around, one of these would be a better choice than Word for storing sensitive data.