Signing Your Life Away?

One thing that i've noticed, and indeed mentioned before, is how everything over here seems to necessitate use of a debit or credit card - even for the smallest amount. I've witnessed people paying for coffee at a local shop costing all of $3 by using a card. I guess in some ways it's easier (although i prefer cash if i can get away with it). Of course, in wanting to establish a credit history here to make things (hopefully) easier in the future, i've had to get a credit card and use it on a regular basis. Unlike most of the cards in the UK, the cards over here still use the magnetic strip on the back (rather than the more secure chips in the UK). Like in the UK, with debit cards, you are required to enter a pin number rather than sign a strip - which is generally more secure I feel. However, unlike in the UK (at least in some places if memory serves), when using a credit card over here, one still has to sign off on the transaction.

Now all this would be well and good, except since getting my credit card here, i've had the chance to observe many cashiers/waiters/whatever whenever i've signed - and was somewhat surprised to find how little interest they seem to take in the matter. I remember when i used to work in a bar, and a restaurant before that, and one thing we were always told was to scrutinise the signature carefully. And, if in doubt, ask for either another signature or some photo ID. Yet over here, there is rarely a casual glance given to the signature or even the person making it. The funny thing is that the machine tells you to hand the card to the cashier. I often did (and still do) try to and was met with some rather odd looks i can tell you. It seems that so long as the store/cafe/wine bar/whatever is getting your business, it doesn't matter if the signature matches that well or not. One hopes that the security measures behind the card are a bit more stringent than this.