Online shopping has a lot going for it. You don’t have to worry about finding a parking spot, you don’t have to drive to five different stores to find the thing you want, and you don’t have to carry any bags around. Everything is delivered straight to your door. You save on gas, stress, and schlepping.
However, there is a downside to online shopping—or there can be, if you aren’t careful. As more people flock to online shopping rather than pounding the pavement looking for that...
For years, the United States has lagged behind other countries when it comes to payment security. EMV cards, also called chip-enabled cards, or chip-and-PIN cards, are standard across Europe and Asia, but haven’t caught on as quickly in the U.S. This is despite the fact that they are more secure than traditional magnetic stripe cards, and also in spite of the numerous data breaches that have compromised consumer payment information over the last year.
As of October 1, 2015, banks have...
The coming wave of chip-enabled EMV credit cards is good news for consumers, who will be better protected from fraudulent charges and identity theft, but for small businesses, it could be a headache.
As of October 2015, businesses must be prepared to accept EMV credit cards, which are equipped with microchips that encrypt cardholder information and keep people safe from credit card thieves. If they don’t accept the cards, they can be held liable for fraudulent charges. However, becoming...
A group of consumer advocates and nonprofit companies are urging the United States government to push for faster adaptation to chip and PIN technology in order to protect consumers.
“Congress must urge the nation’s largest credit card issuers—particularly the big banks and credit unions—to do everything they can to provide the best possible safeguards to protect consumers and their financial transactions,” said a letter signed by companies such as ProtectMyData, the Multicultural...
Groupon recently announced that it is testing a payment processing service that will allow merchants to accept credit cards at a much cheaper price than is currently being offered on the market. This will mark the third new major credit card processing company utilizing a smartphone or device in recent months, with the other two being PayPal and Square.
Groupon - who initially began as a discount deal website targeting specific localities - now has far greater plans to expand its reach....
Late last year, Canada switched over from using traditional forms of money printing and adopted a new plastic currency that is far more durable and long lasting than its former counterpart. It would appear that Canada is seeking to take it one step even further. The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) and Rogers Telecommunications have come to an agreement that will result in the launch of a mobile wallet that will work in conjunction with an equipped chip that can access all of your...
Continue readingA new idea is hitting Britain and is aiming to spike use of credit cards through mobile or "contactless payments". Credit and debit customers who are with Barclay and have Barclaycards are now eligible to sign up and receive something known as PayTag, which can be tapped against terminals to automatically pay for purchases that would otherwise be made with a credit card.
The PayTag is about one-third the size of a traditional credit card, can be easily stuck or attached to the back of a cell...
The sub prime market of credit cards has always been around and always will be. Access to cheap credit -regardless of consequence - will lure in those who know no better or those in a cash-strapped situation. It would appear that for the first time since the recession, this segment of the credit market is growing once again.
Equifax released a new report showing that the lending of bank credit cards to consumers with sub prime credit has increased more than 40 percent between 2010 and 2011,...
The local establishments and retailers want congress to entail the costs that are associated with allowing for the use of credit and debit cards that take a big bite of their profits. These fees, commonly known as swipe fees, are said to hurt these small establishments.
The swipe fees were put in place to provide for the cost of electronic processing of the payments and are usually in the range of 1% to 3% of the transaction amount. However, these fees have ended up becoming one of the...
Could you survive a day without Internet access? On Thursday, April 9th, vandalism of fiber optic cables in Santa Cruz, California cut out Internet and cell phone service for most residents and business owners. ATMs didn't work, some banks were forced to close their doors while others allowed one customer in at a time and attempted to assist them without the use of their computer systems, and most shops couldn't process credit or debit card payments.
Some shops would jot down customer...