Is Plastic Cash really secure?

I recently got to know about the features of ICICI add-on credit card that make it more tempting for getting stolen than cash. Now the number of loopholes in its security are endless.
First the bank doesn't require the signature of add-on card holder. Its just mailed to your house. So if I take the mail before it reaches you and use it then no one can even have doubts. The only signature is on the back of the card. Now we all know how intensely a shopkeeper scrutinizes the signature on the back with that on the slip. I know they are supposed to but its a fact that they don't. I have even heard of cases when a photo credit card was misused by someone else without getting any suspicion of the shopkeeper. So the signature on the back is useless. So if your credit card gets stolen then you cant prove to bank that it was misused. Bank have no records of your signature and shopkeeper doesn't check it.
Second what does any transaction on Internet require with a credit card? Your card number, expiry date, name(sometimes) and the number on the back. Now its nowhere written in the instruction letter that its advisable to scratch out the number on the back to prevent misuse. Because misusing it is a child's task. We all give our cards away in any restaurant or any such place. The guy there can easily write down all the information and transfer as much money as he requires to his pay pal account after which you just cant trace him. How will one ever be able to prove this crime? Nor prove it to bank. I asked the ICICI call center people about this and then they said that please scratch out the number on the back for security. Why cant they tell it earlier? Better why cant the just make us have a password for Internet transactions?

Another incident which I personally experienced was Bank of Baroda Internet account. Now it has so many safety precautions that it is the most unsafe account. First both the Login password and Transaction password must be some 8 characters long including a number and a special character. Now its no easy task to remember such passwords nor hack them. But that was the easy part. The next condition was that both the passwords needs to be changed every 3 months and last 5 passwords cannot be used. So how do i generate and remember such complicated passwords is a mystery. Thus they force me to write down the password which I know is foolish but I don't have an option. I have for now given up on my account. Three months have passed have not accessed it so not changes the password. From what I remember I have to go to the branch to re-activate my account. Hell with it.

I thinks lets just stick to debit cards which are safe and secure.

Stumble It!