Is it safe to pay by card in India? does it cost much to use atms? Also how about online banking either on wifi or at internet cafe? Would really appreciate any info on these topics
Well when I traveled there about three years ago I was so nervous about using a card and I just did what I always do when I travel abroad, and I just used cash. These days I am willing to bet that you just fine using a card, but it might just be easier to do cash and you probably avoid a lot of headaches. It is also best to make sure that everything is paid for that can be ahead of time to save yourself some time and effort.
Same rules apply into card payment like any other nation in the world (well, most of them). If you are visiting Indian urban areas, I don't see much difference in using your master card with an ATM there and another in U.S.A or Australia. And for online banking, the only concern to that is having actually access to internet, which is readily available thanks to widespread wifi coverage that anymodern business s hould have.
Is card skimming prevalent at arms? where they put machine over atm which copies your card details? Also I know wifi is prevalent but wondering how safe and secure it is?
When I travel, I'm planning to bring abundant cash and use the currency exchange. I barely feel safe using wifi or ATMs around the block.
I will prefer using my card to withdraw cash from atm than paying for goods at the store. I think that it will not be safe to move around with a lot of cash. Other online payment systems like Paypal are also accepted in India. I don't know whether there are stores which accept payments in bitcoins.
It's as safe as safe can get. They've introduced a new two pass security where your linked phone number gets an OTP. So, no worries even if you loose your card. And paying by net banking is pretty ok. Just make sure to use a virtual keyboard while using public computers as they might have keyloggers installed to steal passwords! Cheers!
I would just use cash and paypal to pay for stuff. I know that there is wifi almost everywhere. They have very wide coverage but I wouldn't want to risk getting my card skimmed and I don't know how secure it is. Better safe than sorry.
