[patcheudor]

Dangerous is relative. In the US you have roughly 60 days after a statement is received to escalate fraudulent transfers out of your account. If you file a complaint within this timeframe, your money will be returned. The problem of course is that if because that money was taken you miss your mortgage payment or car payment or student loan payment there could be associated fees from those lenders which you would be out. For businesses I think this timeframe may be as short as three days from the fraudulent transaction so in those cases it's a real problem.

Generally I recommend having two bank accounts, one which is rarely used other than for deposits and functions as a backup in the event your primary account is compromised. I also recommend not using a debit card and instead get the financial discipline to just pay off credit card balances each month and then use credit-cards for as much as you can from banks not tied to either your primary or backup checking account.

[timr]

"In the US you have roughly 60 days after a statement is received to escalate fraudulent transfers out of your account."

You have 30 days from receipt of your bank statement. It's in the audio interview of which this article is an exerpt.

[patcheudor]

From the actual law:

"1. Unlimited liability applies. The standard of unlimited liability applies if unauthorized transfers appear on a periodic statement, and may apply in conjunction with the first two tiers of liability. If a periodic statement shows an unauthorized transfer made with a lost or stolen debit card, the consumer must notify the financial institution within 60 calendar days after the periodic statement was sent; otherwise, the consumer faces unlimited liability for all unauthorized transfers made after the 60-day period. The consumer's liability for unauthorized transfers before the statement is sent, and up to 60 days following, is determined based on the first two tiers of liability: up to $50 if the consumer notifies the financial institution within two business days of learning of the loss or theft of the card and up to $500 if the consumer notifies the institution after two business days of learning of the loss or theft."

https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/6500-580.html

[timr]

"If a periodic statement shows an unauthorized transfer made with a LOST OR STOLEN DEBIT CARD"

That's very specific. When it comes to check fraud, I'm going to trust the guy who has spent his career working with the FBI on check fraud.