Online sales are going up this holiday season, and so are online scams and fraudulent sales. While some scams cannot be avoided, many can if you are careful. Most of the press regarding online fraud speak from the viewpoint of a consumer, and what they can do to avoid issues. While this is great, there are also many things that merchants can do to help prevent fraud. First off, make sure that your site is secure. Yes, security is expensive but it is well worth it to invest in proven software. Lax security is one of the easiest things to […]

We all expect fraud to inflict large companies, as it did back in the 2013 Target hackings. While large companies will always be the main target for fraudsters, small businesses are now being affected. Small businesses have a reputation for being la when it comes to security, both online security and terminal security. Merchants, it is up to you to change this, and while it may not be easy, it is necessary. Online security is something that all merchants should already have, whether you have a simple POS in your business, or if you have online sales. Security is not […]

The black market is getting smarter as banks and officials battle credit card fraud. When a customer’s credit card information is stolen, a bank may attempt to buy their stolen data back to figure out the source of criminal activity. In the mid-2000s, almost 80 percent of black-market participants did not associate with criminal organizations, but now only 20 percent are unaffiliated with some sort of criminal group. As a result, a growing number of black-market “card shops” have started to be less welcoming to outsiders. This has made the task of buying back customer information more difficult. According to […]

Jerome Powell, of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, recently delivered a speech that has brought much-needed attention to the payment system in the U.S. and the need for increased safety within that system. Powell explained that, while the deployment of chip cards is a great and important step, even more needs to be done – it shouldn’t stop there. Mr. Powell also remarked that “For many years, traditional authentication methods like signatures…have been used to verify that an individual is authorized to initiate a payment. New approaches to authentication increasingly offer greater assurance and protection. Given the current […]

Thanks to Target’s massive data breach, nearly one year ago, many customers are hesitant to use Target’s debit and credit cards. More so, many are boycotting Target all together, due to the overwhelming affect the breach had on over 10 million people. Now, while there are some hackings that not even the most secure software can catch, Target is still getting a lot of blame for it occurring. While this seems as though it might only affect Target, it also affects those who had credit issues from the breach. Many are now looking to repair their credit. This is where […]