Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Trusteer Discovers New Worm-Based Financial Malware


August 23, 2011 08:23 AM Eastern Daylight Time 
Well Known Ramnit Worm Incorporates Tactics from Zeus Trojan to Commit Online Banking Fraud
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Trusteer, the leading provider of secure web access services, today warned that it has discovered the 18 month old file infecting worm Win32. Ramnit has morphed into financial malware and is actively attacking banks to commit online fraud. Ramnit configurations captured and reverse engineered by Trusteer were found to incorporate tactics from the Zeus financial malware platform. Ramnit has borrowed from Zeus the ability to inject HTML code into a web browser, which it is using to bypass two-factor authentication and transaction signing systems used by financial institutions to protect online banking sessions.
“Unlike the past, when financial institutions had to defend against a limited number of malware platforms, attacks can now come from virtually any malicious software program -- old or new. The malware distribution channel for fraudsters has increased in scale significantly.”
The financial malware version of Ramnit was discovered by Trusteer’s fraud analysts using the Trusteer Pinpoint zero-day anomaly detection system and Trusteer Flashlight remote incident investigation system. Ramnit’s command and control servers are located in Germany and are currently live. According to the Symantec Intelligence Report for July, Ramnit accounts for 17.3 percent of all new malicious software infections. This number is consistent with Trusteer's findings that tens of thousands of machines used for online banking are currently infected with Ramnit.
Ramnit was first detected in 2010 and targets .EXE, .SCR, .DLL. .HTML and other file types. File infection is an old school virus technique that is rarely seen in modern financial malware. The evolution of Ramnit into a fraud tool was made possible when the source code of the notorious Zeus financial malware platform was made freely available on the Internet earlier this year. Since then, fraudsters and malware authors have borrowed parts of the Zeus toolkit and incorporated into other malware. Trusteer researchers found the method used to configure Ramnit to target a specific bank is identical to the one used by Zeus. This allows fraudsters who have written configurations for Zeus to easily port their configuration to Ramnit.
“The metamorphosis of Ramnit into financial malware is a sign of things to come now that the Zeus source code has been made openly available to anyone on the Internet,” said Amit Klein, CTO of Trusteer. “Unlike the past, when financial institutions had to defend against a limited number of malware platforms, attacks can now come from virtually any malicious software program -- old or new. The malware distribution channel for fraudsters has increased in scale significantly.”
Trusteer Pinpoint is capable of detecting and blocking Ramnit-related and zero-day fraud within a bank’s web application, while Trusteer Rapport is capable of detecting, blocking, and preventing Ramnit infections on customer computers. More information on Ramnit, its configurations, and the code it uses against various banks is available to Trusteer customers in the Trusteer Situation Room. Additional public information on Ramnit is available in this Trusteer blog post https://www.trusteer.com/blog/ramnit-evolution-%E2%80%93-worm-financial-malware.
About Trusteer
Trusteer is the world’s leading provider of Secure Web Access services. The company offers a range of services that detect, block and remove attacks launched directly against endpoints such as Man in the Browser, Man in the Middle and Phishing. Trusteer services are being used by leading financial organizations and enterprises in North America and Europe, and by tens of millions of their employees and customers to secure web access from mobile devices, tablets and computers to sensitive applications such as webmail, online payment, and online banking. HSBC, Santander, The Royal Bank of Scotland, SunTrust, Fifth Third, ING DIRECT, and BMO Financial Group are just a few of the companies using Trusteer’s technology. Trusteer is a privately held corporation led by former executives from RSA Security, Imperva, and Juniper. Follow us on www.Twitter.com/Trusteer. For more information about our services, please visit www.trusteer.com.

Contacts

Trusteer
North America
Marc Gendron PR
Marc Gendron, 781-237-0341
marc@mgpr.net
or
Trusteer
United Kingdom
Eskenzi PR Ltd.
Neil Stinchcombe, +44 20 71 832 833
neil@eskenzipr.com

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NFC BlackBerry Curve 9350 Debuts Sept. 9 for Just $79.99 from Sprint


August 23, 2011 10:05 AM Eastern Daylight Time 


Stunning new BlackBerry Curve 9350 is fast, affordable, easy-to-use, full-featured and socially connected
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The next generation of Research In Motion’s (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM; TSX: RIM) popular BlackBerry® Curve™ series of smartphones, the stunning new BlackBerry Curve 9350, comes to Sprint (NYSE: S) on Friday, Sept. 9, offering the latest BlackBerry operating system – BlackBerry® 7. The new BlackBerry Curve 9350 is a fast, affordable, easy-to-use, full-featured and socially connected smartphone that is as beautiful as it is functional.
“It is exciting to see the BlackBerry Curve line continue to evolve, building upon past success”
The slim and stylish smartphone will cost just $79.99 (excluding taxes) with a new line or eligible upgrade and two-year service agreement, after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1 and be available in all Sprint sales channels, including Sprint Stores, Business Sales, Telesales (1-800-SPRINT1) and web sales (www.sprint.com). Sprint Business customers may qualify to get BlackBerry Curve 9350 for $49.99 (excluding taxes) on a business account with a new line or eligible upgrade and new one- or two-year service agreement, after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card1.
“It is exciting to see the BlackBerry Curve line continue to evolve, building upon past success,” said David Owens, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “This latest iteration offers the recognizable form factor our customers have come to enjoy, while adding powerful new features and innovative apps of BlackBerry 7 to deliver the smoothest and fastest BlackBerry Curve experience to date.”
The BlackBerry Curve 9350 smartphone offers a full QWERTY keyboard and trackpad for easy one-handed navigation and keeps users connected by allowing them to easily share moments through pictures and videos via MMS, as well as by instant message with world-class IM services like BBM™ (BlackBerry® Messenger). With easy access to social networking sites like Flickr®, MySpace and Facebook®, this smartphone provides smooth integration to keep users up to speed on what’s happening in their personal and professional lives.
Key features include:
  • BlackBerry App World™, the official app store front for BlackBerry smartphones offering customization, fun and productivity
  • Near Field Communications (NFC) support for a secure exchange of information between NFC-enabled devices over a very short distance
  • 5MP camera with HD video capture, flash and zoom
  • 512MB RAM
  • 2GB microSD card included, with support for up to 32GB microSD card
  • BlackBerry PlayBook support with BlackBerry Bridge™ (BlackBerry Bridge is available as a free download on BlackBerry App World)
  • DataViz Docs To Go® Premium suite preloaded, for editing Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files from anywhere
  • Wi-Fi® (802.11 b/g/n)
  • Bluetooth® 2.1+EDR support
Smoother and Faster with BlackBerry 7
With BlackBerry 7, the BlackBerry Browser is significantly enhanced to provide a faster and more fluid user experience and includes optimized HTML5 performance for incredible gaming and video experiences.
Building upon the Universal Search feature introduced in BlackBerry 6, BlackBerry 7 expands the capability to include voice-activated search. This new capability makes it easier and more convenient to search for content on the smartphone or web.
BlackBerry 7 also integrates BlackBerry® Balance™, which separates personal content from corporate content, giving users the freedom and flexibility to use the smartphone for personal email, Facebook®, Twitter®, multimedia, games and other apps, while satisfying the very real need for corporate data to be highly secure and manageable. BlackBerry Balance works in conjunction with BlackBerry® Enterprise Server 5.0.3, which provides a number of unique IT policy controls, such as wiping only corporate data or blocking work-related content and apps from being copied or forwarded to personal contacts.
BlackBerry Curve 9350 requires activation on one of Sprint’s Everything Data plans plus a required $10 Premium Data add-on charge for smartphones. Sprint’s Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, AnytimeSM includes unlimited web, texting and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint Network, starting at just $69.99 per month plus required $10 Premium Data add-on charge – a savings of $40 per month versus Verizon’s comparable plan with unlimited talk, text and 2GB web or $10 per month versus Verizon’s 450-minute plan with unlimited text and 2GB web. (Pricing excludes taxes and surcharges.)
Sprint was unbeaten among major wireless carriers for customer satisfaction according to results from the 2011 American Customer Satisfaction Index. In addition to tying for first place among wireless carriers, Sprint was also the number one most improved company in customer satisfaction, across all industries, during the last three years, according to the survey.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 52 million customers at the end of 2Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com orwww.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.
1The American Express Prepaid Reward Card (“Card”) provided in connection with this Rebate offer is a prepaid Card that is usable only at U.S. merchants that accept American Express Cards. Some limitations apply. Offer valid only in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The Card is not redeemable for cash (except where required by law) and does not provide ATM access. Use of Card constitutes acknowledgement that it is given as a reward and no consideration, value, or money has been paid by the holder to American Express in exchange for this Card. USE OF CARD IS SUBJECT TO THE CARDHOLDER AGREEMENT. SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW, A $3.00 MONTHLY FEE WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST CARD BALANCE, STARTING SIX MONTHS AFTER CARD ISSUANCE. Card expires six years after the date of issuance if not depleted before. For BALANCE, customer service and Cardholder Agreement, visit americanexpress.com/sprint or call 1-866-608-3756. Card issued by AEPCMC under license from American Express Prepaid Card Management Corporation, Travel Related Services Company, Inc.
The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited.

Contacts

Sprint
Mark Elliott, 603-621-4511
mark.j.elliott@sprint.com

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Real-Time Alerts Now Available for U.S. Bank ATM and Check Card Customers


August 23, 2011 10:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time 
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--U.S. Bank, lead bank of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), is making available real-time ATM card and check card alerts to its consumer and business cardholders’ mobile devices and computers, notifying them of important account activity.
“U.S. Bank is pleased to provide cardholders with real-time alerts that help them conveniently monitor their accounts to make wise purchase decisions as well as provide them with suspicious activity alerts that warn of possible fraudulent activities”
The real-time alerts, which range from suspicious activity being detected to cash being withdrawn from an ATM, are sent via SMS text message, email or both. Cardholders can select the alerts that will make it easier for them to stay informed and be in better control of their finances. There is no charge from U.S. Bank, but message and data rates from the customer’s wireless provider may apply.
“U.S. Bank is pleased to provide cardholders with real-time alerts that help them conveniently monitor their accounts to make wise purchase decisions as well as provide them with suspicious activity alerts that warn of possible fraudulent activities,” said Clifford Cook, chief marketing officer at U.S. Bank Retail Payment Solutions. “U.S. Bank ATM card and check card real-time alerts, together with our existing credit card real-time alerts, are great examples of how we continue to provide customers with exceptional payment services and value.”
The new real-time alerts notify cardholders when suspicious or irregular activity has been detected or a transaction meets or exceeds the amount specified. Cardholders may also receive real-time alerts for international transactions, gasoline purchases, ATM withdrawals, declined transactions or for online, mail-order or telephone transactions where the card is not present.
Enrollment is easy. On the U.S. Bank Internet Banking website, cardholders can specify the account and alert or alerts they want to receive, choose email, text or both as the delivery method and then start receiving alerts.
U.S. Bank Retail Payment Solutions (RPS) is one of the nation's leading payment processing and full-service issuing providers. RPS offers credit, debit, and prepaid payment solutions to consumers and small businesses through U.S. Bank and in partnership with financial institutions, businesses, governments and employers.
About U.S. Bank
U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $321 billion in assets as of June 30, 2011, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States. The company operates 3,086 banking offices in 25 states and 5,086 ATMs and provides a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses and institutions. U.S. Bancorp and its employees are dedicated to improving the communities they serve, for which the company earned the 2011 Spirit of America Award, the highest honor bestowed on a company by United Way. Visit U.S. Bancorp on the web at www.usbank.com.

Contacts

U.S. Bank Media Relations
Teri Charest, 612-303-0732
teri.charest@usbank.com

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The Best & Worst Places for Overdrawing Your Checking Account


August 23, 2011 08:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time 
Moebs Study Gives Surprising Result
View Press ReleaseLAKE BLUFF, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Half of consumers, who overdraw their checking account, do so by $40 or less. 34 million consumers, or about 26 percent of consumer checking accounts, do this 10 or more times a year.
“Consumers, especially those who overdraw their checking account 10 or more times a year, will pay significantly less in fees if they bank with a community bank or credit union that offers overdraft services”
If you are going to overdraw your checking account, either intentionally, or like most, unintentionally, where’s the worst place to do this? Answer: bouncing a check from a checking account at a bank or credit union that doesn’t offer an overdraft service. Why? Your bank will return the check non-sufficient funds (NSF), and charge you $28, and the merchant you gave the check to will charge you $30, bringing the grand total to $58.
After a study that included 1,240 banks, 1,292 credit unions, and 832 national retail merchants like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Walgreens, Safeway and others, economic research firm Moebs $ervices found 20.5 percent of banks and credit unions no longer provide overdraft service, or will always bounce your check if funds are not available. Merchants seem to have picked up on this. The study also showed that 40 percent of national retail merchants will not accept checks for purchase of goods or services, thus requiring cash, debit card, or credit card.
Financial Institutions That Won’t Bounce Your Check
At Wall Street Banks, those with $50 Billion or more in assets, you can get overdraft service but it will cost you $34 per check. Community banks and credit unions charge $25. “Consumers, especially those who overdraw their checking account 10 or more times a year, will pay significantly less in fees if they bank with a community bank or credit union that offers overdraft services,” points out Michael Moebs, Economist and CEO of Moebs $ervices. “Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, US Bank and the other huge banks are not the place to have your checking account if you think you may overdraw your checking account, especially 10 or more times in a year,” says Moebs.
The Frugal Way to Overdraw
The Moebs Study concluded that for consumers who end up with a negative balance of less than $100, the most cost efficient provider of overdraft funds is an internet or brick & mortar payday lender. Payday lenders have a median charge of $17.50 for a small loan of $100 or less, which is sufficient to cover most consumers’ negative balance checking accounts.
Different prices at different places
According to the Moebs Study these cities have ODs at or great than $30: Atlanta, Cincinnati, Dallas, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Tampa, and Washington D.C. Yet these urban areas offer overdrafts at $25 or less: Boston, Kansas City, St. Louis, Sacramento, San Antonio, San Diego, and San Francisco. According to Mr. Moebs, “the best place to have an overdraft is San Francisco were the median price is $22.50 while the worst place is Miami were the median is $30.95. Obviously the institutions in the Bay Area of San Francisco recognize the consumer need for a safety net while in Miami an overdraft is still a penalty.”
About Moebs $ervices
Since 1983, Moebs Services has been collecting primary empirical data about financial institutions’ services, pricing, operating expenses and financial condition and analyzing the data in a counter intuitive manner, which provides solutions that make sense. For more info please visit www.moebs.com

Contacts

Harden Communications Partners
John Lopez, 415-517-9760
JLopez@hardenpartners.com

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Doug Lambert Appointed As General Manager – North America At GlobalCollect


August 23, 2011 04:12 AM Eastern Daylight Time 
GlobalCollect, the world's premier payment service provider of local e-payments, assigns Doug Lambert as General Manager of its US entity
AMSTERDAM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Effective immediately, Doug Lambert joined GlobalCollect in the newly created position of General Manager North America. Working out of the San Francisco office, Mr. Lambert will be responsible for all commercial aspects, cross functional staff matters, and operational business activities across the North American region and report into Koen Vanpraet, Chief Commercial Officer of GlobalCollect.
A senior financial services executive with a 20-year record of demonstrated achievements and success in driving revenue and profit growth in highly competitive markets both domestically and internationally, Mr. Lambert joins GlobalCollect from Bank of America where he was most recently Senior Vice President & National Sales Executive. Previously in his career, he held senior management positions at Universal Savings Bank, Providian Financial, and Wells Fargo.
Koen Vanpraet, CCO of GlobalCollect, commented: “I am delighted to welcome Doug to GlobalCollect. He will be instrumental in shaping and steering the commercial and operational tactics of our North American business as well as contributing to our overall growth strategy as a member of the global Senior Management Team. Given his impressive track record, I am confident that Doug will be a great asset to the team.”
About GlobalCollect 
GlobalCollect is the world's premier Payment Service Provider of local e-payment solutions for international Customer Not-Present channels such as internet, mail and telephone orders, and specializes in a wide range of industries such as travel, ticketing, telecommunications, retail, publishing, portals, online gaming, and digital content. Through a single-interface online payment platform, we offer access to an unrivalled portfolio of local and international payment methods in almost 200 countries, including all major credit and debit cards, direct debits, bank transfers, real-time bank transfers, eWallets, cash at outlets, prepaid methods, checks, and invoices. www.globalcollect.com
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Euronet Announces Closing of $355 Million Senior Secured Credit Facility


Euronet Worldwide
August 22, 2011 08:05 PM Eastern Daylight Time 
LEAWOOD, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Euronet Worldwide, Inc. (Nasdaq: EEFT), a leading global electronic payments provider and distributor, today announces the closing of an amended and expanded five-year, $355 million senior secured credit facility (“Credit Facility”) with a syndicate of financial institutions. The Credit Facility consists of a $275 million revolving line of credit and an $80 million term loan. It replaces a $100 million revolving line of credit and $126 million term loan maturing April 2012 and April 2014, respectively.
“The new Credit Facility gives us the flexibility and liquidity for short-term cash requirements, strategic growth initiatives as well as for general corporate purposes.”
The revolving line of credit allows for borrowings in U.S. dollars, euro, British pound sterling, Australian dollars and/or Indian rupees. Term loan and revolving line of credit borrowings will bear interest at short-term variable interest rates plus a leverage ratio-based margin. Subject to certain conditions, the Company has the option to increase the Credit Facility by up to an additional $205 million by requesting additional commitments from existing or new lenders. The Credit Facility requires the Company to meet certain covenants and conditions and establishes limits for certain restricted payments, including share and subordinated debt repurchases.
“We were very pleased to extend and expand our credit facility by receiving additional commitments from most of the banks in our existing facility and pleased that several new banks joined the group,” comments Rick Weller, Chief Financial Officer of Euronet Worldwide, Inc. “The new Credit Facility gives us the flexibility and liquidity for short-term cash requirements, strategic growth initiatives as well as for general corporate purposes.”
About Euronet Worldwide, Inc.
Euronet Worldwide is an industry leader in processing secure electronic financial transactions. The Company offers payment and transaction processing solutions to financial institutions, retailers, service providers and individual consumers. These services include comprehensive ATM, POS and card outsourcing services, card issuing and merchant acquiring services, software solutions, consumer money transfer and bill payment services, and electronic distribution for prepaid mobile phone time and other prepaid products. Euronet's global payment network is extensive - including 12,058 ATMs, approximately 53,000 EFT POS terminals and a growing portfolio of outsourced debit and credit card services which are under management in 33 countries; card software solutions; a prepaid processing network of approximately 588,000 POS terminals at approximately 276,000 retailer locations in 29 countries; and a consumer-to-consumer money transfer network of approximately 133,000 locations serving 133 countries. With corporate headquarters in Leawood, Kansas, USA, and 44 worldwide offices, Euronet serves clients in approximately 150 countries. For more information, please visit the Company's website atwww.euronetworldwide.com.
Statements contained in this news release that concern Euronet’s or its management's intentions, expectations, or predictions of future performance, are forward-looking statements. Euronet's actual results may vary materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including: conditions in world financial markets and general economic conditions; technological developments affecting the market for the Company’s products and services; foreign currency exchange fluctuations; the Company’s ability to renew existing contracts at profitable rates; changes in fees payable for transactions performed for cards bearing international logos or over switching networks such as card transactions on ATMs; and changes in laws and regulations affecting the Company's business, including immigration laws. These risks and other risks are described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. Copies of these filings may be obtained via the SEC’s Edgar website or by contacting the Company or the SEC. Euronet does not intend to update these forward-looking statements and undertakes no duty to any person to provide any such update under any circumstances. The Company regularly posts important information to the investor relations section of its website.

Contacts

Euronet Worldwide
John Livers, 913-327-4200

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TSYS Names New Head of Global Product


August 23, 2011 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time 
COLUMBUS, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TSYS today announced that Paul Bridgewater, a 23-year veteran of the payments and financial services industry, has been named group executive of global product. Bridgewater will report to Paul Todd, executive vice president, TSYS.
“Paul brings a wealth of product and development knowledge in the payments industry to his new position at TSYS”
“Paul brings a wealth of product and development knowledge in the payments industry to his new position at TSYS,” said M. Troy Woods, president and chief operating officer, TSYS. “We are excited that he is joining our team, and look forward to him developing and harmonizing our global product suite as we continue to expand our business both in the U.S. and internationally.”
Prior to joining TSYS, Bridgewater served as senior vice president, payments, of Digital River, Inc., in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, where he managed all aspects of its multi-million dollar internal payment services business unit. Bridgewater’s additional responsibilities at Digital River included product management and roadmap execution, third-party payment vendor relationships, payment services strategy, and real-time fraud and risk mitigation for its external payment services business.
Bridgewater also has extensive international payments experience, having worked extensively with Citibank International, NatWest Bank, PLC, and Anker Data Systems.
About TSYS
TSYS (NYSE: TSS) is reshaping a new era in digital commerce, connecting consumers, merchants, financial institutions, businesses and governments. Through unmatched customer service and industry insight, TSYS creates a better experience for buyers and sellers, supporting cross-border payments in more than 85 countries. Offering merchant payment-acceptance solutions as well as services in credit, debit, prepaid, mobile, chip, healthcare, installments, money transfer and more, TSYS makes it possible for those in the global marketplace to conduct safe and secure electronic transactions with trust and convenience.
TSYS’ headquarters are located in Columbus, Georgia, with local offices spread across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. TSYS provides services to more than half of the top 20 international banks. For more information, please visit us at www.tsys.com.

Contacts

TSYS Media Relations
Cyle Mims, +1-706-644-3110
cylemims@tsys.com
or
TSYS Investor Relations
Shawn Roberts, +1-706-644-6081
shawnroberts@tsys.com
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