The Facts

• Although not required by law, the major credit card issuers require that account holders sign the back of their credit card. Cashiers are supposed to request a signature on the back before continuing with the transaction. This ensures that the signature on the card matches the one on the receipt.
  
  

Misconceptions

• Some people falsely believe that you should put something akin to "Check for ID" on the back of a credit card instead of a signature. The argument for this practice is that providing a signature gives a would-be thief an idea of what your signature looks like. This is not true--you must have a signature on the back to complete a transaction. However, you can add the "Check for ID" note next to your signature.
  
  

Considerations

• Technically, signing a credit card also means that you agree to uphold the issuer's policies, but you must do so even if you do not sign the card.
  
  

Effects

• Businesses should check for a proper signature on the back of a card because failure to do so transfers fraud liability to the merchant for failing to abide by the policies set forth by the payment network.
  
  

Significance

• Bobbi Dempsey of CreditCards.com questions the effectiveness of signing or not signing a card because many businesses allow you to swipe it yourself. Because of the increasing prevalence of self-swiping, the credit signature is often not an issue unless dealing with a store that sells high-priced items, such as electronics retailers, which tend to experience a higher rate of fraud.