I was recently at the new vehicle licensing office out east (in Breakers) and used my credit card to pay for my yearly vehicle registration and the young man took my card and closed the door to the office whilst processing my payment. He took over 10 minutes to complete the processing. Should I be concerned? Not only would he have access to my card number but my address and who knows what else is in the system. In the “real” world, I would never lose sight of my card, which is why this concerns me so, plus the length of time he had it as well as all the other info. Please advise.


Auntie’s answer: These days when the threat of identity theft is real and seemingly ever present, I certainly understand your concern. I would like to point out, however, that any time you use your credit or debit card to pay at a restaurant it will be well out of your view for a while. But I took your question to Jason Azan, who is the deputy director of the Department of Vehicle and Drivers’ Licensing.

First of all, Mr Azan wanted to stress that his answer is based on a few assumptions, since certain details were not included in your question. For starters, he is presuming that you went to the photo room at the office you specified, where customer service officers (CSOs) sometimes assist in processing transactions. In that case, he said, “It would be necessary for the CSO to take the customer’s card to the credit card terminal to ‘swipe’ the card. The door that separates the photo room from the back office is supposed to be closed at all times (for obvious reasons).”

As to the length of time the processing required, Mr Azan explained, “If it occurred over the past two weeks, it would be around the time our bankers installed the new chip card terminals,” which I’m guessing would have slowed things down. I believe his assumption is correct because I received the question within the last two weeks.

Since his response was based on assumptions, which made it a bit difficult to provide specific help, Mr Azan has requested that the reader contact him to discuss further, adding, “It is a bit nerve-racking, yes, when something like your credit/debit card goes with someone else for a few minutes.”

You can email Jason Azan or call 945-8344. I know he would be happy to ease your concerns as best he can.