Friday, April 10, 2009

Skimming Costs Banks, Not Consumers in AU

Banks wear losses from card skimming

The Australian Bankers' Association (ABA) is assuring customers they are not liable for unauthorized transactions on their accounts when they become victims of skimming crimes. Skimming is the unauthorized copying of information stored on the magnetic strip of debit and credit cards.

This information is often used by criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs, or create a counterfeit card, which is then used for fraudulent transactions in retail outlets or on the Internet or at ATMs.Criminals generally use two methods to skim cards. Firstly, they use card readers or a skimming device that resembles a pager at the point of sale. In other cases, a device and a hidden camera is attached to an ATM which captures information from the cards' magnetic stripes and PIN entries.If a bank or the police identifies skimming has occurred, then the customer will not be responsible for any related fraudulent transactions on their account/s.

David Bell, Chief Executive of the ABA, said: "When skimming is suspected, banks will conduct an investigation and funds are restored to customers – the innocent victims of this crime. In other words, the bank wears the loss."

Source : Australian Bankers Association




, ,

Traditional Industry Powerhouse FIS - Javelin


Javelin Strategy and Research » FIS to offer Yodlee’s same-day bill pay

FIS to offer Yodlee’s same-day bill pay

I found this information, as reported in American Banker, to be interesting because of the progression can go through over the years. When I first met the people at Yodlee mine was a one person operation and Yodlee was in a small office across from Intel in Santa Clara (where some of their programmers had the sleeping bags under the desk that were common during that Silicon Valley growth period). Yodlee was all about aggregation then, and potential deeper integration into core payments and financial services apps was what we discussed.  Now fast forward ten years, and traditional industry powerhouse Fidelity Information Services is adding same day bill payment capability from Yodlee, rather than from it’s own internal development efforts or via some other similarly-traditional payments provider.

Editor's Note:  And I found this information, as first reported in PIN Payments News to be interesting, because Javelin Strategy and Research seems rather impressed with "traditional industry powerhouse Fidelity Information Services (FIS) and Acculynk...however...HomeATM and FIS will be at the ETA convention together "at booth #347 ensuring home debit card purchases are safe."   (using hardware...not software)  How NYCE is that?
  • Creative solutions to accepting PIN Debit for payment at Web-based merchant sites
  • Expanding payment options
  • Reduced interchange costs
Click here to learn more!




, , , , , , ,

Visa Selects Malaysia for NFC M-Payments Service

Finextra: Visa selects Malaysia for first commercial contactless m-payments service
Visa selects Malaysia for first commercial contactless m-payments service

Visa has teamed with Malaysia's Maybank, wireless carrier Maxis and handset manufacturer Nokia to launch its first commercial contactless mobile payments service.

The deal marks the first time customers can purchase an NFC-enabled phone off the shelf and use it to make Visa payWave-enabled transactions at the point-of-sale.

The commercial roll out follows several m-payments pilot programmes Visa has conducted in various parts of the world.

From today Maybank Visa account holders can download their Visa payWave credit account details directly to the Nokia 6212 classic handsets over the Maxis wireless network.

Once the account has been personalised on the phone, users can make purchases at around 1800 merchant outlets that currently accept Visa payWave in Malaysia.

In addition, customers will be able to pay for charges while using metropolitan transit systems, bus terminals, highway toll gates and car park facilities at more than 3000 contactless payment touch points throughout Malaysia.

"We believe that Visa's NFC mobile payment launch in Malaysia signals a tipping point for the payments industry globally as we move from mobile payment pilots to commercial availability," says Elizabeth Buse, global head of product, Visa.

"The launch of Visa's first commercial NFC program in Malaysia is based on Visa's experience gained from undertaking extensive pilot activities around the globe and is something Visa plans to replicate in other places around the world."


Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

FedRes and Equens Team on Cross-Border Payment Processing

Finextra: Federal Reserve Banks and Equens team on cross-border payments processing

Federal Reserve Banks and Equens team on cross-border payments processing

The Federal Reserve Banks and Equens have agreed a deal that will see them offer processing services to banks for payments between the US and Europe from early next year.

The partners have signed a memorandum of understanding on cross-border payments processing in multiple currencies, including the US dollar and euro.

Compared to domestic transactions, cross-border payments currently see relatively low volumes and high associated fixed costs.

The Federal Reserve Banks and Equens say their service will support banks in reducing their processing cost base, and strengthen their competitive position in the market.

Elizabeth McQuerry, assistant vice president, retail payments office, of the Federal Reserve Banks, says: "When talking with clients, we saw a clear demand for expanded payment services to and from Europe. Together with payment processor Equens, we can offer our clients an excellent, secure and cost-efficient solution."

Michael Steinbach, chairman, Equens, adds: "We are constantly looking for economies of scale, thereby creating opportunities for our clients - the banks - to further reduce their processing costs. By offering a standardised channel for cross-border payments processing, our clients do not have to worry about the complexity of maintaining different cross-border systems."





Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

TrialPay Reaches 30 Million Users

TrialPay Unveils New Purchase Incentive Platform, Reaches Milestone of 30 Million Users
New Solution Helps Leading Brands Including Kmart, Restaurant.com and 1-800-Flowers.com Increase Conversions, Boost Average Order Value and Maximize the Profit of Each Transaction

Editor's Note:  It wasn't that long ago (January 27th) that I wrote about how fast TrialPay was growing. "TrialPay Adds 5 Million Users in 54 Days"  Now, here we are 70 days later, and they've added ANOTHER 5 million.  Impressive.  I've got an idea for them in terms of how to get their 30 million users a free swiping device and lower their "card not present" interchange fees into "card present" and in a lot of cases, lower them even "further" by providing them with the capability to accept TRUE PIN Debit transactions.  I'll keep you updated!  Seems to me, based on their blog's review of our PIN Payments Blog, (see graphic on the left) that they would like the idea! 

Mountain View, Calif. – April 7, 2009 – In just two and a half years, TrialPay’s Get It Free solution has helped more than 7,500 premier sites increase sales by providing 30 million online shoppers compelling ways to pay. Now TrialPay is expanding its payment and promotions solutions to include a Purchase Incentive Platform, which lets online sellers optimize conversions and boost Average Order Value (AOV) while reducing promotional costs, like deep discounts and free shipping.

TrialPay emerged in 2006 as a trendsetter in the alternative payments space, but our business has since evolved to introduce compelling, cost-effective promotions that increase the probability of conversion and maximize the profit of each transaction for any online seller,” said Alex Rampell, TrialPay’s CEO. “In this economy, online marketers need to get creative to boost sales and reduce costs. TrialPay’s purchase incentives have already helped Kmart, Lavasoft and many more name-brand companies increase conversions while lowering overhead.”

By offering free products, coupons or gift cards to online shoppers, TrialPay’s purchase incentives entice customers to complete their transactions or add more to their carts. Online sellers select an incentive from TrialPay’s catalog of more than 2,000 name-brand advertisers and present this offer to shoppers to increase the likelihood of conversion. While the perceived value of the incentive encourages a customer to complete his purchase, the seller only pays a fraction of the cost to access the incentive. Advertisers supply their product or service as a purchase incentive knowing that the lifetime value of the customer they will acquire is worth significantly more than the coupon or gift card they give away.

Restaurant.com, the trusted and valued source connecting restaurants and diners, joined as one of the first advertisers on the new Purchase Incentive Platform after successfully using TrialPay’s Get It Free solution. Through this partnership, $25 Restaurant.com gift certificates are presented to shoppers from premier sites, such as 1-800-Flowers.com, Kmart.com and more, as a cost-effective incentive to complete a purchase or add more products to their cart.

“Dining out is a tradition that many consumers practice routinely. Restaurant.com gift certificates are tempting incentives that promise excellent value, thousands of dining options nationwide and memorable experiences with friends and family,” said Tony Bombacino, chief marketing officer of Restaurant.com. “Through our partnership with TrialPay, Restaurant.com gift certificates encourage customers to complete purchases at trusted sites representing a range of industries. Merchants increase sales, shoppers enjoy great meals and Restaurant.com meets customers—who we hope will get to know us and value our brand. Everyone wins.”


To offer Purchase Incentives on your site, please write to pi@trialpay.com.
To learn more about TrialPay, its partners or platforms, please write to press@trialpay.com or call 650-318-0000.


About TrialPay
TrialPay introduces e-commerce solutions that increase the probability of conversion and maximize the profit of each transaction for any online seller. TrialPay's transactional advertising model uses the efficiencies of the Web to pair online shoppers with ideal products at every stage of the purchase process. With TrialPay, everyone wins: merchants make more sales from their current traffic, advertisers acquire new customers on a pay-for-performance basis and shoppers get a free product with every purchase.

TrialPay works with name-brand companies across many verticals, including: Fandango, The Wall Street Journal, Gap, McAfee, Blockbuster, Match.com and thousands of others. And through its original Get It Free model, TrialPay offers 30 million registered users more than 2,000 ways to pay through premier advertisers. For more information, visit www.trialpay.com.


About Restaurant.com
Restaurant.com connects restaurant seekers and food lovers to savings at more than 10,000 restaurants nationwide and to various online retailers. As the nation’s leading online directory of restaurants and restaurant gift certificate provider, the company brings people together to relax, converse and enjoy well-prepared and -served meals at affordable prices. To date, Restaurant.com customers have saved more than $75 million through the gift certificate program. Restaurant.com has operated since 1999 and is based in Arlington Heights, Ill.


Press Contacts

For TrialPay:
Lisa Contoyannis
Director of Public Relations
press@trialpay.com
(650) 318-0000


For Restaurant.com:
Jeff Conlin
jconlin@restaurant.com
(847) 481-5518






Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

149% Increase in ATM Related Fraud Attacks in '08



Complete item: http://www.allmediascotland.com/media_releases/4522/european_atm_fraud_attacks_up_149%25

Description:

EAST (the European ATM Security Team) has reported a 149% rise in ATM related fraud attacks during 2008. This reverses a previous trend and is primarily led by the 129% increase in card skimming incidents, with a total of 10,302 reported.

Despite this significant increase in incidents, fraud related losses increased by just 11% with a total loss of ?485 million reported. This smaller increase in losses, relative to the significant rise in reported incidents, is indicative that that deployed counter-measures, such as anti-skimming devices, are increasingly effective, as are fraud monitoring and detection capabilities.

EAST Director and co-ordinator, Lachlan Gunn said, "This increase in reported incidents is of great concern to EAST members. While the year on year fraud loss figures show an increase, the half year figures show a declining trend for such losses over the past three six month periods, with international losses due to card skimming falling by 18% in the second half of the year.

This indicates that the EMV* rollout in Europe continues to be effective, although international losses are expected to continue while criminals are able to illegally withdraw cash from ATMs abroad that are not EMV compliant".

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Disqus for ePayment News