The old magnetic stripe technology currently used in credit and debit cards in the United States is inexpensive and readily available, making our cards highly vulnerable to fraud. It’s understandable then that credit and debit card fraud is Americans’ primary fear, with 68% of those surveyed describing themselves as extremely or very concerned about the…
Contactless payment, also known as NFC or near field communication, is a technology that allows electronic devices to communicate wirelessly. In the case of a mobile wallet application, those devices would typically be a mobile phone and a point of sale terminal at a checkout counter. (NFC has other uses beyond credit card transactions: it…
Frequent fliers accustomed to traveling internationally for business are helping drive demand for EMV cards within the United States. Business travelers who have found it increasingly difficult to use their magnetic stripe cards while abroad are now requesting that American banks provide EMV, or chip and PIN cards, which are used more commonly in Europe…
Have you ever thought about what would happen if you lost your mobile phone? These days we rely on our mobile phones more than ever. For a lot of us, it can also be a nightmare if it’s lost, stolen or hacked, especially since today it’s become our most personal computer, But despite the fact…
Fishing, of course, is the sport of tossing a baited hook into the water and then patiently waiting for a fish to bite. Phishing is similar. The cybercrook sends out spam email and waits for a victim to take the bait. A phisher can send thousands of phishing emails a day, and eventually some people…
An employee may pay for their device and its monthly plan, but employees who use their personal devices at work should be required to adhere to a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy that sets the ground rules. If you choose to use your personal device for work purposes at any time for any reason,…
In light of the Yahoo Voices hack where 450,000 passwords have been compromised, it’s time again to let the world know what they are doing wrong when it comes to passwords. CNET pointed out that: 2,295: The number of times a sequential list of numbers was used, with “123456″ by far being the most popular password.…
Yahoo reported the theft of some 400,000 user names and passwords to access its website, acknowledging hackers took advantage of a security vulnerability in its computer systems. The Mountain View, California-based LinkedIn, an employment and professional networking site which has 160 million members, was hacked and suffered a data breach of 6 million of its…
NFC is an acronym for near field communication, a wireless technology that allows devices to talk to each other. In the case of a mobile wallet application, those devices would be a mobile phone and a point of sale device at a checkout counter. Visa is testing out its NFC service PayWave contactless payment service…
In California, an identity thief was recently sentenced to five years in prison for committing what appears to be classic new account fraud. The thief reportedly used a victim’s identity to open a mailbox at a shipping store in Modesto, which he often used to have fraudulently issued credit cards and other financial and identity…
