Parents whose children have taken their bank cards without telling them are mistakenly reporting to the banks that they have been victims of so-called card "skimming", writes John Downes.
Instead, their children are using the cards to buy goods on the internet or to take money from their accounts.
As thousands of shoppers around the country take advantage of the winter sales, the Irish Payment Services Organisation (Ipso) has confirmed that Irish banks receive some 60 claims a month from individuals incorrectly claiming they have been skimmed.
However, Ipso said it frequently emerges that children have taken their parents' credit, debit or ATM cards. This is discovered when the parent notices unexplained transactions on their account and queries the missing sums.
Úna Dillon, head of card services with Ipso, said a significant proportion of the "invalid" skimming reports turn out to be due to family members, usually children. Often, they have used the cards to buy goods on the internet, or to go on a shopping spree.
"When banks are talking about family members, it tends to be children using the cards. People who think they may have a fraud on their account should check with their family members before going to their bank."
Ipso and the Garda recently issued a Christmas warning that organised criminal gangs, mainly from eastern Europe, have already stolen more than €3.5 million this year by skimming.
Ipso estimates that banks receive around 1,000 reports of skimming per month, with up to six of the 60-odd cases of false reports per month coming from genuine fraudsters.
Skimming involves the use of a range of equipment, including copying devices, concealed microcameras and "card-trapping" devices at ATMs to fraudulently take money from an individual's bank account.
Consumers also frequently report a skimming attempt when they return home after using their bank card abroad.
They should check receipts from such transactions in case a debit relates to a late charge, Ms Dillon said.
False reports also emerge where cards have been used after being found in stolen bags, complete with pin numbers which are sometimes stored in their mobile phones. But in such cases, the individual is liable for any missing money.