topic Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home in Credit in the News

How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Aug 2019 20:18:54 GMT

"Your metal credit card—at least, the one I’ve been using—isn’t embossed. It’s just two layers of plastic that have been adhered to a thin piece of metal. Accordingly, you can peel off these plastic layers and shred or destroy them without having to worry about the metal itself."

It's a Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

Metal is so 5 minutes ago. Bring on the glass cards already!

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

Anonymous — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 21:36:20 GMT

I'm used to Canadian (Chip + PIN) cards. If the card is compromised and cancelled by the issuer they're completely useless in Canada, even the cardholder wrote their PIN on the card and it's stolen.

When an American Chip and Signatured card is cancelled where/how could it be used?

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

iv — Sun, 18 Aug 2019 02:30:19 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I'm used to Canadian (Chip + PIN) cards. If the card is compromised and cancelled by the issuer they're completely useless in Canada, even the cardholder wrote their PIN on the card and it's stolen.

When an American Chip and Signatured card is cancelled where/how could it be used?

In addition to using the numbers on the card for a card-not-present transaction?

Anywhere that's still swipe-only (lots of places, sadly), assuming the account hasn't been issued a new number.

Also in most cases, failing a chip read three times (by, say, intentionally damaging the chip contacts) will allow a fallback to swipe.

Some issuers treat a fallback like that as an auto fraud-alert, some don't.

Some issuers (Amex and Discover, for instance) can distinguish different physical cards when swiped (so turning off individual cards actually works)... others have identical swipe data (even on AU cards).

(And a light-duty industrial or high-end office shedder handles metal cards just fine... also staples and large paperclips. Just don't try binder/bulldog clips!)

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

HighAchiever — Fri, 06 Sep 2019 23:55:56 GMT

@iv wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
I'm used to Canadian (Chip + PIN) cards. If the card is compromised and cancelled by the issuer they're completely useless in Canada, even the cardholder wrote their PIN on the card and it's stolen.

When an American Chip and Signatured card is cancelled where/how could it be used?
In addition to using the numbers on the card for a card-not-present transaction?

Anywhere that's still swipe-only (lots of places, sadly), assuming the account hasn't been issued a new number.

Also in most cases, failing a chip read three times (by, say, intentionally damaging the chip contacts) will allow a fallback to swipe.

Some issuers treat a fallback like that as an auto fraud-alert, some don't.

Some issuers (Amex and Discover, for instance) can distinguish different physical cards when swiped (so turning off individual cards actually works)... others have identical swipe data (even on AU cards).

(And a light-duty industrial or high-end office shedder handles metal cards just fine... also staples and large paperclips. Just don't try binder/bulldog clips!)

It probably won't work on the Apple card to put it in the shredder. I watched that video of them shooting it with at .22 caliber bullet. It didn't go through it at all. The bullet just bounced off of the card. 😱

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

iv — Sat, 07 Sep 2019 03:59:59 GMT

@HighAchiever wrote:
It probably won't work on the Apple card to put it in the shredder. I watched that video of them shooting it with at .22 caliber bullet. It didn't go through it at all. The bullet just bounced off of the card. 😱

Eh... It wasn't secured well, and the card bounced out of the holder. Try it with the card firmly anchored in place, and it would look like the average rural road sign.

But yeah, all home shredders and almost all office shredders would fail on that card. But even fairly small industrial shredders would handle it just fine.

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

SouthJamaica — Sat, 07 Sep 2019 16:07:31 GMT

@iv wrote:
@HighAchiever wrote:
It probably won't work on the Apple card to put it in the shredder. I watched that video of them shooting it with at .22 caliber bullet. It didn't go through it at all. The bullet just bounced off of the card. 😱
Eh... It wasn't secured well, and the card bounced out of the holder. Try it with the card firmly anchored in place, and it would look like the average rural road sign.

But yeah, all home shredders and almost all office shredders would fail on that card. But even fairly small industrial shredders would handle it just fine.

When I had to destroy my Amex Business Platinum card it was a nightmare. I had to bend it back and forth with a pliers approximately 30 or more times.

It was really solid.

There's no way I'd risk breaking a $500 shredder to destroy a closed credit card.

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

iv — Sat, 07 Sep 2019 23:34:51 GMT

@SouthJamaica wrote:
There's no way I'd risk breaking a $500 shredder to destroy a closed credit card.

$500 is a mid-range office shredder...

...this is a small/midsize industrial shredder: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006MIE01E

Not something you'll have at home, no. But if you have one in the office, go ahead and drop that card in - the shredder won't even notice.

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

HighAchiever — Sat, 07 Sep 2019 23:40:46 GMT

@iv wrote:
@SouthJamaica wrote:
There's no way I'd risk breaking a $500 shredder to destroy a closed credit card.
$500 is a mid-range office shredder...

...this is a small/midsize industrial shredder: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006MIE01E

Not something you'll have at home, no. But if you have one in the office, go ahead and drop that card in - the shredder won't even notice.

😱 $18,780.00 😱

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

M_Smart007 — Thu, 30 Jan 2020 16:56:47 GMT

I have found a 12 gauge with 00 bucksot or #4 Turkey loads.. works real well to destroy metal cards.

(please do not try this within City limits)

Re: How to Destroy a Metal Credit Card at Home

Anonymous — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 01:24:59 GMT

@M_Smart007 wrote:
I have found a 12 gauge with 00 bucksot or #4 Turkey loads.. works real well to destroy metal cards.
(please do not try this within City limits)

I learned two things from this post:

What a '#4 Turkey load' is, and what it looks like when shot into ballistic gelatin.
It's probably a lot of fun destroying credit cards and other household items at @M_Smart007's house.