October 11, 2016 – PITTSFIELD – Greylock Federal Credit Union has announced it is launching CardValet®, a new debit card management and fraud mitigation tool. Debit cardholders simply download the free app from the Apple® App Store or Google® Play Store, and then they can actively manage their debit cards.

“With this new and powerful debit card management tool, our debit cardholders can set parameters for when, where and how their debit card is used,” said John L. Bissell, Greylock President & CEO. “It’s easy to turn ‘off’ their debit card from their smartphone, and then turn it back ‘on’ when they want to use it. The CardValet launch is part of Greylock’s commitment to adding value for our Members.”

The on/off feature is only one of the safeguards available with CardValet. Using the GPS system in the smart phone, geographic use restrictions can be established. Other controls can restrict usage by merchant and spending limit. Real time alerts create another layer of fraud protection with notice that a transaction was attempted, declined, or both.

Real-time smartphone alerts can be customized based on the types of information each cardholder would like to receive. For example, a cardholder can set up an alert to be notified when a card is used, when a transaction is approved and exceeds any of the permitted use policies, or when a card transaction has been attempted but has been declined based on the parameters established.

CardValet offers cardholders the capability of linking additional accounts to better monitor dependent spending. So, by using the GPS system in their smart phone, geographic use restrictions can be established for college students along with restrictions on merchant type and spending limits.

CardValet is also ideal for small businesses. All transactions can be monitored or controlled for specific merchant categories, such as travel, restaurants or entertainment, and can be denied or reported for types of merchants deemed not business related.

“CardValet is ideal for users who want to actively manage their cards. CardValet’s inventive and thoughtful approach to card management makes the user experience as easy as possible,” said Bissell. "We are excited to offer this tool to our cardholders. Not only is CardValet user-friendly and convenient, but it will aide in our continued efforts to prevent fraud and identity theft for our cardholders.”

CardValet puts the control of debit cards right into the cardholders’ hands. Cardholders can link more than one account to keep track of all debit cards in one easy-to-use application.

For more information, call (413) 236-4000.