Tuesday , April 7, 2026

Fraud & Security

Acquirers, Small Merchants See More Risk-Reduction Value in PCI, Survey Shows

The 7-year-old Payment Card Industry data-security standard (PCI) is proving its effectiveness in preventing data breaches among small merchants, according to a survey of payments-industry acquirers set to be released next week. The survey, cosponsored by ControlScan Inc., an Alpharetta, Ga.-based vendor of PCI-compliance solutions, and the Merchant Acquirers’ Committee, …

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Study Shows Merchants Still Store Massive Amounts of Unprotected Card Data

n Of 2,736 scans worldwide since Jan. 1 using SecurityMetrics Inc.’s PANscan tool, 71% revealed merchant computer systems were storing unencrypted payment card data, an 8% increase from a similar survey in 2010, according to the Salt Lake City, Utah-based provider of PCI security solutions. The participating merchants ranged in …

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Using Malware And Skimmers, Fraudsters Harvest Card Data at Restaurant Depot, Lucky

  The data-breach Grinch is stealing Christmas from a big restaurant supplier and Lucky Supermarkets, a major West Coast grocery chain, both of whose payment card acceptance systems were compromised recently by fraudsters using different techniques. The breach at Queens, N.Y.-based Restaurant Depot LLC, which also does business under the …

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Security Worries Arise As Mobile Payments Begin Their Ascent

The promise of mobile devices to generate new payment transactions and better service for bank customers comes with a big potential downside. Risk-control executives strongly believe fraudsters have their eyes on smart phones and related mobile devices, according to new research from Aite Group LLC. Asked if “mobile fraud is …

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MasterCard And Intel Look for Near-Term Results from E-Commerce Deal

The alliance MasterCard Inc. announced earlier this week with Intel Corp. to secure e-commerce transactions will not supersede SecureCode, a MasterCard online authentication system, but will fairly soon lead to a new type of contactless-payment device from an emerging category of ultra-thin, fast-start PCs, executives with both companies tell Digital …

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Star Agrees To Offer Online PIN Debit Service from CardinalCommerce

  The Star EFT network, which has been working for several years on ways to enable cardholders to conduct PIN-debit transactions with online merchants, said on Thursday it will offer a service from CardinalCommerce Corp. that promises to allow issuers to choose how to authenticate users of PIN-debit cards in …

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Awareness of PCI Remains “Shockingly Low” Among Small Merchants, Study Finds

Small merchants are not much more aware of—let alone compliant with—the Payment Card Industry data-security standard (PCI) than they were a year ago, according to a study released this week. Some 53% of small merchants are now at least aware of PCI, a small increase from the 47% a similar …

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Federal Agencies Turn a Watchful Eye on Third-Party Payments Providers

  Already the subject of new debit card regulations, the payments industry is coming in for more scrutiny from the federal government. A Federal Trade Commission official told attendees at a merchant-acquiring conference on Thursday that the government has formed a task force to monitor third-party payment-services providers. The feds’ …

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