Fraud & Security

Ransomware payments exploded last year, with the average payment rising 78% year-over-year to $541,010, according to data compiled by cybersecurity firm Palo Alto Networks.Blackbaud Inc., a cloud software company serving nonprofits, said clients of its Blackbaud Merchant Services unit can now accept payments via both PayPal and Venmo in the United …

The popularity of debit cards for card-not-present transactions, particularly online payments, is surging, and a new proposal from an industry trade group could expand that popularity while preventing fraud and facilitating merchants’ transaction-routing choices. The proposal is contained in a white paper released Tuesday by the U.S. Payments Forum, an …

Mastercard Inc. early Wednesday said it will launch two new payments tools that rely on the card network’s rapidly growing stake in open banking and account-to-account transactions. The new digital tools, which Mastercard says will not be available until later this year, are expected to address risk and uncertainty in …

The Brink’s Co. said its BLUbeem point-of-sale cash-management platform is now available through the Clover POS technology from Fiserv Inc.Paysign Inc., a provider of prepaid cards for the health-care industry, reported $8.8 million in fourth quarter 2021 revenue, a 21% increase year-over-year. Purchase volume in the quarter rose 13.2%. Cardholders totaled 4.3 million at …

Payments provider Trust Payments launched Stor, an e-commerce platform for small and medium-size businesses, and is inviting independent sales organizations, banks, and other third-party players to market the service to merchants. The new product is based on technology Trust Payments acquired earlier this year.NoFraud, an online fraud prevention service, released NoFraud Checkout, …

Mobile point-of-sale provider FreedomPay said it has signed Sephora USA, a retail chain offering beauty products at more than 500 stores.The total value of consumer credit card rewards globally will rise 15% to $108 billion by 2026 from $92 billion this year, fueled by increasing adoption of cobranded cards issued by merchants, according to …

Escalent Inc., an analytics and advisory firm, said it acquired Mercator Advisory Group, adding to its payments advisory portfolio. Escalent acquired Javelin Strategy & Research in 2019. Current Mercator president and chief executive Robert Misasi will help with the transition before leaving these positions.MoneyGram International Inc. agreed to pay a civil monetary penalty of …

Fraudsters targeted fintechs at an alarming rate in 2021, according to Sift Science Inc.’s first-quarter 2022 Digital Trust & Safety Index. The index reveals that the payment-fraud attack rate across fintechs within Sift’s network increased a whopping 70% in 2021 compared to 2020. The attack rate is defined as the …

Buy now, pay later specialist Affirm Inc. said its fiscal quarter-to-date financial metrics exceeded its expectations, leading it to revise its financial outlook. Affirm on Feb. 10 had expected its gross merchandise volume to be no more than $3.71 billion, but now says it will be at least that much.Aplazo, a buy …

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic continues to impact consumer finances and financial habits. On the one hand, since the onset of the pandemic, the bank deposits of American households have been at a record high, partially due to limited spending on entertainment and travel, reduced in-person shopping, and the receipt of …