Just got a massage today from my home bank that on January first next year, some bank begin allready maestro cards in many country including thailand are unable to use, if the account holder not activate with his signature at the counter ,means if someone don't know this he will unable to take money next year

The security system that will be used is called geo controll

i had a maestro once worst car i ever bought sort of like the card now no work

Re: 'Just got a massage today from my home bank'

I wish my bank was giving out free massages.

FYI...some googling came up with this quote talking about Geoblocking. But whether your card-issuing bank may integrate geoblocking to where the card customer can select blocked countries is a different story. I expect the card-issuing bank would select regions/countries where the card is blocked for all customers possibly pending individual customers requesting/begging his card be unblocked for a certain country/region.

Geoblocking – both simple and effective

In order to ensure global card usability, SIX Payment Services enriched its Fraud Control services for card issuers with Geoblocking, a highly effective system-based mechanism in the joint fight against card misuse. With Geoblocking, the bank can align the area where each individual card can be used with travel and usage habits at the request of the cardholder, and restrict usability individually on a geographical basis. For instance, a card can be blocked for relatively insecure regions such as North and South America, Asia or Africa. For e.g. a holiday trip, Geoblocking can be temporarily suspended in these regions. This significantly reduces the fraudsters’ options to use the datasets after a possible skimming attack.

Ease of use for the cardholder is essential for effectiveness. Geoblocking can be integrated as a function in e-banking. This enables customers to actively change settings for their cards without have to contact their bank. This control option is already available to 4.5 of 6 million cardholders in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Re: 'Just got a massage today from my home bank'

I wish my bank was giving out free massages.

Being a bank, it'd probably rub you up the wrong way!

Sorry...... - just couldn't resist it - and thank you OP for the information!

I'll get me coat..............

Well, Chase always blocks my cards in a new location until I phone them and verify the first charge. Subsequent charges are allowed at the location after that. I can't blame them for not wanting to lose money through fradulent charges.

my card by default can only be used in Europe if I want to use it worlwide I must activate it online or at a branch of the abn-amro bank, been that way for a couple of years now.and after activation it reverts back after a short time.

Called the hotline now and got information that the time period when I want to use the card exactly must been set before leave Europe, I fly soon because the ice age here is coming

Is there any shop in Asia where I can pay with maestro a bill, and not only ATM use?