Celeste Martin29 June 2025 | 12:32

Debit vs credit cards: What’s safer for online purchases?

A certified financial advisor shares tips on how to protect your money when making digital payments.

Debit vs credit cards: What’s safer for online purchases?

702's Gugs Mhlungu spoke to resident certified financial advisor, Paul Roelofse.

Listen to their conversation in the audio clip below.

Online shopping has become a part of everyday life for many people, but knowing how to pay safely is more important than ever.

"...the online shopping experience has really grown. It's become such an essential thing in our lifestyles now. It kind of found its roots and it accelerated quite rapidly over the COVID period. The statistics say that it's ongoing in terms of growth in the regions of 20% and 30%."
- Paul Roelofse, certified financial advisor

Roelofse says while both debit and credit cards have their place, credit cards may offer better protection when things go wrong.

"With a credit card, you're not spending your money for the transaction; you're spending the bank's money. The history around that tends to be a lot more favourable in terms of disputes and retrieving your money."

- Paul Roelofse, certified financial advisor

He warns that debit cards are directly linked to your bank account, so if a transaction goes wrong or turns out to be fraudulent, the money is already gone and can be harder to get back.

"I think where the big distinction is with a debit card is that once the money is gone, and say it was misallocated or it's handed in the wrong place, and you've got now a dispute with your bank, you tend to find that that dispute takes a little longer. The resolution of a fraud or misallocation of funds, because the money is gone already, the bank has a different role to play now in terms of trying to retrieve it. History says that those types of disputes do certainly take a lot longer and are a lot more difficult to retrieve than a credit card."
- Paul Roelofse, certified financial advisor

He adds that one newer and safer option is the virtual card.

"Virtual cards are certainly a favoured payment instrument because of the fact that the CVV number doesn't stay static...if you look at your current way of payment on a plastic card in your wallet or your purse, that is probably a lot more vulnerable if you lost that card, than losing on a virtual card. I think that's where we're stepping forward in terms of making online shopping a lot more secure."
- Paul Roelofse, certified financial advisor

Shoppers are also reminded to stay alert when buying online, as fake websites can look just like the real thing.

Here are Roelofse's online shopping tips:

  • Use a credit card for better protection in case of fraud.
  • Avoid fake websites by double-checking the site’s URL and legitimacy.
  • Try a virtual card, which offers extra security with a rotating CVV code.
  • Always verify transactions using your bank’s two-factor authentication.
  • Don’t store card info on retail websites; enter it manually each time.

Scroll up to listen to the full conversation