PINcept.com: July 2009

MasterCard/Visa See Debit Grow but"Credit Declined"

MasterCard Inc. saw U.S. debit card purchase volume rise 3.4% from year-earlier levels to $82 billion in the second quarter, and debit purchase transactions rose 11.3% to 2.11 billion. But U.S. credit purchase volumes fell 15.5% to $120 billion on 1.5 billion transactions, off 5.8%. Total worldwide transactions processed grew 7.9% to 5.63 billion...Visa Inc. processed 10.3 billion transactions in its third fiscal 2009 quarter ended June...

Posted by John B. Frank Friday, July 31, 2009 0 comments

Merchant Risk Council Adds New Board Members

v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMERCHANT RISK COUNCIL ADDS NEW BOARD MEMBERS Leaders from Accertify, GlobalCollect, Linden Lab and Microsoft Join MRC Board (Seattle, WA—July 31, 2009) The Merchant Risk Council (MRC), a merchant-led trade association focused on electronic commerce risk and payments globally, today...

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In Two Weeks Your iPhone Will Be Hacked

Does the picture on the left look familiar? Cause I've used it a dozen times in a dozen posts. In fact, most recently, about two posts ago. The article below is justifies it's use once again. And this is only the tip of the iceberg. Smartphones use browsers. Browsers are not safe. Financial transactions need to be done outside the browser space. It's the typing. Researchers at...

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Jamaica Fraud Tops $3 Billion Dollars

Jamaica Gleaner News - Fraud hits historic high at $3b - Business - Friday | July 31, 2009Fraud hits historic high at $3bPublished: Friday | July 31, 2009Avia Collinder, Business ReporterDetective Carl Berry of the Organized Crime Unit of the Jamaica Constabulary Force shows merchants and employees a fake credit card that was seized by the police, at a National Commercial Bank 'Merchant Fraud Seminar' in Kingston. To curtail its losses...

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Think This is Safe? Think Differently!

Experts predict more mobile Trojan slip-ups on the wayAs news that the Symbian Foundation has admitted it needs better safeguards to prevent malicious apps finding their way onto mobiles, Fortify Software predicts this problem is going to get worse for mobile phone manufacturers and their operating system developers."The problem with mobile phones is that their processing capacity is increasing at a near-exponential rate, with some of the...

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4 Arrested in $422,000 ATM Scam

Gang charged in $422,000 ATM scamAuthorities in New York have arrested four people accused of stealing $422,000 by exploiting a regulation requiring banks to reimburse the accounts of customers who claim their ATM cards have been used without their permission.The four defendants - Lam Dang, Eric Manganelli, John Tluczek and Marzena Tluczek - are charged with making false claims totalling more than $700,000, to more than 20 banks, including...

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More on Clampi...It's the Big One!

"The best strategy to defend against Clampi is to use separate machines for Web surfingand funds transfer" "We weren't all thatworried about Storm, and we weren't all that worried about Conficker, This one you need to worry about." - Joe Stewart, one of the world's foremost authorities on botnets and targeted attacks.Finextra: Bank data-stealing Trojan infects hundreds of thousands of PCs - researcherBank data-stealing Trojan...

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Security Researchers: Online Transactions Aren't Safe

If you think you are seeing a pattern over the last two days, about how insecure the internet is, especially when it comes to financial transactions, then you'll also notice that the Paradigm Shift I've been talking about is starting to take shape. It's becoming increasingly clear. Internet Security BrokenNo Website is SafeOnline Transactions aren't safeUse the Internet for browsing, use another device for payments. Read...

Posted by John B. Frank Thursday, July 30, 2009 0 comments

Down on Main Street

Pain on Main Street: A First-Ever Drop in Card-Based Same-Store Sales(July 30, 2009) As the recession continues to batter merchants of all sizes, small and medium-size retailers are getting hit especially hard, and as a result so are the acquirers that process their card transactions. Indeed, in a development apparently never seen before, same-store sales on Visa and MasterCard for these Main Street merchants were down fully 4.9% in the...

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Malware Numbers Intensify: 92k into 30 Million

PandaLabs announced a multi-year study that examines the proliferation of rogueware into the overall cybercriminal economy.Click the graphic on the left and prepare to be shocked and amazed. In 2006 there were less than 740,000 malware samples. By the end of 2008 there were 15 million. By the end of June 2009, there were 30 million. I'm thinking Swiping vs. Typing here.The report reviews the various forms of rogueware...

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Separate Machines Needed for Web Surfing and Transactions

A renowned researcher has stated our case: "The best strategy to defend against Clampi is to use separate machines for Web surfingand funds transfer" - Joe Stewart, one of the world's foremost authorities on botnets and targeted attacks. "Using Windows, it's too dangerous todo transactions on the same machine you do for Web surfing," he says."You can't have any crossover between them." Editor's Note: Looks to me likethe message we've...

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MasterCard Shares Rise after Reporting Strong Earnings

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MasterCard Inc, the world's second-largest credit card network, reported better-then-expected quarterly earnings Thursday as it raised fees charged to banks and cut expenses, sending its shares up 7 percent. "It is a question of cost control," said Robert Dodd, an analyst at Morgan, Keegan & Co. "Marketing and advertising expenses were much lower than I expected." The company's larger rival, Visa Inc,...

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No Websites, Legitimate or Not Can Be Trusted

Websense: This Past Month in Web ThreatsSTATE OF THE THREAT ABSTRACT:The conjunction of technologies and the monetizing of hacking haveresulted in a web environment where no websites, legitimate or not canbe trusted....

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Is Logging In with Username/Password "Careless and Negligent?"

I had to bring you an excerpt from a story in today's AsiaOne Business entitled "Credit Card Stolen? Mind the Pitfalls." I especially liked the quote from the bank that did not want to be named. (enlarged below)BANKS in Singapore are standing by their policy of holding customersresponsible for transactions made on their lost or stolen cards if theydo not report the missing card in time. Consumers who cry foul may have...

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Viruses, Malware and Botnet Zombies at an all time high

Editor's Note: Financial Transactions CANNOT be done on the web because the "wicked web" hackers weaved have made it unsafe. HomeATM is "hands down" doin' it right, by doin' outside the browser. You would think the information below would alarm people. You would think the information below would paint a picture that the web is not safe. You would think that. Wouldn't you? The conjunction of technologies...

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Visa 3Q Net Up 73% On IPO Gain; Volume Drops 5%

Article - WSJ.comBOSTON (Dow Jones)--Visa Inc.'s (V) fiscal third-quarter profit soared 73% from a year ago, as investment income and reduced expenses offset a slowdown in consumer spending.In 4 p.m. New York Stock Exchange composite trading on Wednesday, the company's shares were at $66.78.On the heels of the results, investors pushed the stock down to $66 in after-hours trading.The San Francisco-based company also reiterated its view...

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Syncada: Visa's New Onliine Payment Processing Business with US Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp, Visa launch online payment processing businessBy Nicole Garrison-Sprenger ngarrisonsprenger@pioneerpress.comUpdated: 07/29/2009 04:11:32 PM CDT var requestedWidth = 0; if(requestedWidth > 0){ document.getElementById('articleViewerGroup').style.width = requestedWidth + "px"; document.getElementById('articleViewerGroup').style.margin...

Posted by John B. Frank Wednesday, July 29, 2009 0 comments

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