Wrapping up 2010

Fraud losses cost the financial and retail industries more than $200 billion in 2010. Among the top fraud trends that threatened merchants, banking institutions and most importantly the customers: Malware Attacks, Skimming and SQL Injections. All of which our company can help prevent going into this new year. To find out more on preventing these threats among others, call us at: (877)217-0707

Also- Read More on 2010's top threats [HERE]

5 key areas of Payment Card Industry Threats

One thing we know for certain – PCI is not going away. Because a merchant can be fined for not being in compliance, it’s far better to be proactive now, than it is to regret it later.

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As the economy worsens, credit card fraud seems to be climbing.

One example is in Arizona where 30 cases of skimmers at gas pumps have now been reported. Troubled times lead to poor decisions by all. Think about that the next time you use your card at a business not advertising a Fraud Free way of taking your card.

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Secret Service Agent Discusses Some Skimming Cases

He states about one case: “We found more than 10,000 numbers on a suspect’s computers that he had recovered from various skimmer devices he had,”

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Do you valet your car??

Make sure that you are not leaving any card's. You may think that this is ludicrous to do, but it appears that it is happening all the time. The following news report shows one valet driver, skimming cards out of customers vehicles.

[VIDEO]

St. Paul Wal-Mart employee caught for skimming customers credit cards right under their noses

Supposedly Brandon Reed kept the skimming device in his pocket and when the customers, standing feet away, were not looking he would pull out the device and skim their cards. He successfully stole tens of thousands of dollars from more than 57 people, 22 of which were in 3 work shifts.

[READ MORE]

Could you use $150.00?

Our company is now offering a referral bonus of $150.00 to any one who sends business our way! Give us a call today and let us do all the hard work. (877)217-0707

Texas Skimming Ring Brought Down

Local and federal authorities said the thefts started from credit and debit cards swiped at the Chicken Express restaurant on old Jacksonville highway in Tyler. One of the suspects was an employee at that restaurant.

And it turns out, it took a quick thinking video arcade manager in Longview to set their arrests in motion. On November 9, a man identified as 24-year old Christopher Michael used a credit card to withdraw more than $100 in quarters from the Longview mall arcade.

[READ MORE]

"The payments industry's best defense is improved consumer and merchant card-skimming awareness."

This is what Jeremy King of the PCI Security Standards Council stated while discussing threats facing the card industry in 2011. Dine Fraud Free is one way to avoid the risk on the merchant level. Learn more about our program at www.dinefraudfree.com

Read More About This Story: [CLICK HERE]

Man arrested who was operating a large skimming ring through his numerous girlfriends.

Minnesota police say that Marcus Dupree Smith (25) used his girlfriends who worked at local restaurants, gyms, and other businesses to skim credit cards when customers least expected it. "This is the main player that we were looking for," Lt. Sporny said.

[READ MORE]

19 year old Home Depot employee arrested for skimming

Home Depot employee skimming cards at the checkout right in front of customers. When you are not using a customer facing terminal either at a retail location or in a restaurant make sure you keep an eye on what is happening to your credit card or debit card

[READ MORE]

A simple traffic stop unfolds into another case of skimming

A Miami woman is pulled over for going under the speed limit. After appearing nervous the police officer searches the car and finds numerous cloned credit cards and ID's.

[READ MORE]

When using a public ATM.........

Follow a few steps to protect your bank account. First, make sure that there is not skimming unit over the card reader. You can grab the reader and give it a tug, if it comes off, make sure to notify the location owner. Secondly, always cover your PIN number! New skimmers will come with a small camera to review your pin. Check out the following article to learn more:

[READ MORE]

Watch your credit card at restaurants

Here’s a new credit card fraud gambit that ranks a “10″ on the outrage meter.

A U.S. Secret Service investigation has revealed a string of credit card thefts in Washington, D.C. area restaurants. Waiters at local eateries reportedly stole credit card numbers and used the data to ring up luxurious purchase at elite retailers like Gucci and Barney’s of New York.

In one case, Secret Service investigators arrested Nicole Ward, a waitress at the Cheesecake Factory, on charges of stealing $117,000 from restaurant customers in 2008 and 2009. The Secret Service alleges that Ward was working on behalf of a larger criminal organization that specialized in credit card fraud. The syndicate reportedly paid Ward $40 per stolen card, for a total of about $5,000, the Secret Service said.

Ward’s method was both effective and frightening – especially to any credit card holder. When a diner paid his or her tab with plastic, Ward and two accomplices used electronic ‘skimming’ devices allegedly provided by the credit card fraud outfit that could read and download key credit card data. The syndicate reportedly took the card data and slapped the numbers on fraudulent credit cards and used them to rack up tens of thousands of dollars in bogus purchases.

In 2009, the Secret Service was notified by Citibank that numerous fraudulent charges were showing up on credit cards previously used at the Cheesecake Factory location that employed Ward. From there, it was short work to link Ward and her accomplices to the cards from the employee identification number that was printed on the card receipts.

The new restaurant scam isn’t restricted to Washington, D.C. either. Police reports from New Orleans claim a waitress at a local Bubba Gump Shrimp restaurant sold 50 fraudulently-obtained credit card numbers using the same scam. Police in Buffalo, N.Y. report similar crimes.

The good news is that most restaurants have systems in place – particularly the employee I.D. number that appears on card receipts – to eventually catch up to wayward waiters. But that doesn’t mean you’re out of the woods – a resourceful wait-staffer could still run off and take a picture of your credit card with an illegally-obtained device, or even a simple cell phone.

So this holiday season, be aware of where your credit card goes when it leaves your hands and is hauled away by a waiter or waitress. It could be taking an expensive trip and racking up thousands of dollars in fraudulent credit card charges.

Police arrest 3 and search for the 4th in a large credit card skimming case.

Police say that one of the suspects worked at a local Tyler Texas restaurant and obtained hundreds of customers cards by using an "access device" also known as a skimmer. When police searched the residence they found credit card making equipment and hundreds of counterfeit credit cards. Who are you handing your card over to when dining out?

[READ MORE]

2010 timline of skimming cases

The reports of skimming and payment card fraud in this list are taken from the Identity Theft Research Center's data breach list and ISMG's BankInfoSecurity.com coverage. So far in 2010, 45 skimming and payment fraud incidents have occurred in the United States. What follows are the reported skimming events and card fraud incidents and how the businesses or financial institutions were attacked.

Check out the time line: [CLICK HERE]

Skimming Ring Busted

Group of four arrested after skimming ring busted. The group started in Michigan skimming and using cards. Their road trip ended in Arkansas when they were apprehended at Wal-Mart. See more at the link below.

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Debit Cards are being used more than credit

Shoppers moving to use Debit Cards or Cash this holiday season. Black Friday 2010, 72.4% of purchases made were by Debit cards, cash, and or check. Does your business have a solution for pin debit with the increase? Side-note: the UK announced today that Debit cards are now being used more than cash and credit.

[READ MORE]

Here are a few quick tips to help prevent Credit/Debit card fraud from happening to you.

• Be hyper-vigilant about checking your account. This is most important. Most people don't check every day, but they should start. Waiting for too long means you're more liable for charges, and once your money's gone, it's gone. If it's a large amount of money and you waited too long to see it, you could have to wait for months for the bank to issue your money back and figure out what happened.

• Never let your card out of your sight/hand. If you have to hand your card over, make sure you keep an eye on the transaction. If you see something happen, report it to management and cancel your card.

• Look at the fine print. Banks vary when it comes to how much you might be liable for if you become a victim of fraud. Make sure you know all the details beforehand.

• Shred your statements. Same goes for receipts. There's so much information that can be gathered by someone who goes through your trash. Most banks have account and credit card numbers printed right there on your statement for the thieves to see. If you can, go for paperless statements and get everything sent to you via email.

• Have an emergency account. If a thief manages to drain your entire account, you would most not have access to additional funds. The banks will shut off your cards and there'd be no way to pay the rent or bills and your credit would suffer. It's important to set up a separate account for emergencies such as this one.

Has this kind of fraud ever happened to you? What do you do to avoid it?

Hackers Hit Hotels, Steal Credit Card Numbers from Guests

Wyndham Hotels revealed that "a sophisticated hacker" had penetrated their computer system. Customers at up to 28 Wyndham Hotels and Resorts may have had their credit cards compromised

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Capitol Hill Breach Update shows that over 1,000 cards compromised from overseas hacker

We reported earlier about a rash of credit card fraud centered in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle. Come to find out, the breach originally only affecting 100 or so people may end up affecting over 1,000 credit and debit card accounts. It has been discovered that the breach happened at the Broadway Grill restaurant, from here the overseas hacker was able to leapfrog from the restaurant's access to a critical server in the transaction process where account informaiton was available. From here the hacker had access to hundreds of other cards.

With Alpine Payment Systems Compliance assistance program, we ensure that customers are meeting all requirements of PCI data security to eliminate the risk of breaches such as this. With the Alpine Payment Systems Compliance Assistance program covering the back of house and the Dine Fraud Free Program eliminating the risk of skimming by not letting customers cards leave their hands, restaurant owners can rest assured that these sort of crimes will not happen to their establishment.

To find out more check out our website: Alpine Payment Systems

To read more on this story- [Click Here]

Last year, “skimming fraud” cost the restaurant industry more than $200 million and the trend is rising - rapidly!

Credit card skimming in the restaurant industry is becoming more exposed as high-dollar theft cases are being made against restaurant workers. Recently in the Minneapolis – St. Paul area, seven employees were charged with stealing customer credit card information from those they served in the restaurant.

When handling customer credit cards the workers also swiped the card through a portable electronic device commonly known as a “skimmer.” The skimmer captured the customer information contained on the magnetic stripe on the back of the card. The information can then be sold or transferred to organized rings that produce counterfeit cards and rack up fraudulent charges.

In this case, the group allegedly used the customers’ stolen information to fraudulently purchase at least $150,000 in goods and services in just five months. Last year, “skimming fraud” cost the restaurant industry more than $200 million and the trend is rising - rapidly!

It presents a very real problem for the restaurant owner and retailer. Trusted employees perpetrate this crime against their customers. The customer does not know their credit card information has been compromised until they get their monthly credit card statement. By the time credit card companies and the retailers and restaurants are notified that there may be a problem, large amounts of fraudulent purchases have been made. As in most cases, many customers’ cards have been compromised in one location and the crime can easily amount to six figures, as outlined in this one.

The outrage from customers that have had their identities stolen does not bode well for the manager or the owner of the business who failed to protect them from the crimes committed by their employee(s) and fail to appropriately respond after it happens. The brand image can be damaged, sometimes irrevocably.

Dine Fraud Free is the only true solution to this problem. Restaurant owners and managers can spend hours and unnecessary expenses training staff, managing staff, and properly screening employees. This, or simply implement our program and start eliminating the risk today. With our Dine Fraud Free program, the customers card never leaves their sight. The transaction happens at the table. One major benefit (among numerous others such as faster table turn times) of Dine Fraud Free is the built in PIN pad on the terminal allowing the restaurants the opportunity to obtain a PIN debit transaction. With Dine Fraud Free's PIN debit program merchants pay 0% + $.49 cent transaction fee for all PIN debit transactions. The average merchant pays anywhere from 2-4% to process credit cards in their business. This means, for a $50.00 table, the restaurant pays out $1.00-$2.00, but, with our PIN debit program the restaurant would pay 0% plus a $.49 cent transaction fee. A savings of $.51 cents to $1.51.

Contact us today to find out more about Dine Fraud Free and see how the program can help you save on processing costs. (877)217-0707

"It's almost like being pick-pocketed, but you still have your wallet,"

The waitress at a River Oaks restaurant approached her customers with a secret in her pocket, took their credit card and disappeared for just a minute.

She rang up the meal, swiped the card through the restaurant's computer and returned with the receipt.

Sometime during that everyday transaction, prosecutors say, she used a small battery-powered card scanner to surreptitiously scan the unwitting customer's card.

Able to fit in an identity thief's palm or masquerade as a pen in a shirt pocket, the tiny "skimmer" is emerging as the newest threat to bank accounts.

"It's almost like being pick-pocketed, but you still have your wallet," said Assistant Harris County District Attorney Ed McClees. "It's something that can be done with sleight of hand, without the person even knowing it has been done."

The tiny digital devices can collect and hold information from hundreds of cards then can be easily downloaded and transferred worldwide over Internet black markets.

With the holidays approaching, authorities are warning consumers to stay vigilant by regularly checking their accounts online, keeping receipts from where they shop and watching who handles their card.

Possession not a crime

Authorities estimate that dozens of store clerks and servers are arrested every year in Houston. Authorities are reluctant to quantify how often skimming happens, however, because one waiter at one restaurant can skim hundreds of numbers. There also are cases of identity theft that may have involved skimmers but cannot be traced or were not reported, investigators said.

"What we catch is a fraction of what happens," McClees said.

Possessing a skimmer is not a crime, but having one with stolen numbers is, he said. Attorneys and other legitimate small business owners may use skimmers every day.

If used illegally, the amount of information in the memory determines the degree of the charge, ranging from misdemeanors to first-degree felonies, which can carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. The River Oaks waitress is awaiting trial on state jail felony charges, whichcarries a maximum of two years behind bars.

Secret Service special agent Marvin Wright said consumers generally are victimized 24 to 48 hours after the number is "compromised."

"That information can then be encoded on a lost, stolen or counterfeit credit card and used anywhere in the world," Wright said.

In addition to skimmers in the hands of would-be conspirators, they also can be placed on ATMs and gas stations to capture information during a legitimate transaction. The skimmer is set up as a small hood on the real reader so the card is seen by both. A hidden camera records the PIN entry so a fraudulent card can be used at any ATM.

Identity thieves enlist friends, neighbors and other contacts to get more numbers, said John Brewer, chief of the Harris County District Attorney's identity theft section.

Sting operation

In July, four women who ate together at a Houston chain restaurant all discovered fraudulent charges on their bank accounts. When they alerted police, they recalled that their waitress took a long time with their cards.

When police questioned her, the woman cooperated and said she was approached and given a gift card to skim cards at her jobs. She also worked as a cashier at a big box retailer.

Police set up a sting days later in which the woman asked for another skimmer, scanned five cards that had been set up with accounts for fraud investigations and returned it to the identity thief who lived in a Houston motel.

Prosecutors arrested the man for debit card abuse and forgery, accusing him of using the data to create credit cards to buy $100 gift cards.

Brian Rogers. "Beware of 'skimmers': Gadgets raid bank accounts." Chron Houston & Texas News. November, 22 2010, 12:46am. .

Teenager who masterminded a $19million bank fraud on an internet crime forum is facing years behind bars

Nick Webber, the son of former Guernsey politician Tony Webber, ran a website which sold stolen credit card details and offered tutorials in a range of scams. Read more at the link below.

[READ MORE]

Top ten worst credit schemes

Below is a story of the top 10 credit card fraud cases. Very informative and really makes you think, if it is this easy, what are merchants doing to avoid these types of crimes from happening to you the customer for the future?

[TOP 10]

Man Hacks into the Federal Reserve

Does your business meet all the requirements for PCI DSS security? Below is an article that should not be overlooked. The question to ask yourself after reading: if someone can hack their way into the Federal Reserve what keeps someone from hacking into your Point of Sale equipment?

[FEDERAL RESERVE HACKED]

The many sides of skimming

For those of you just starting to follow us. Our objective is to eliminate the risk of credit card skimming and fraud in the hospitality sector. We are doing this by eliminating the card from leaving the customers sight while at the same time offering a compliance assistance program for our customers. Below is a link of different types of skimming to be aware of.

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5 things to know about ATM skimming

Check out the video below to see more on the rising crime of ATM skimming.

[VIDEO]

Top 4 Skimming Threats

Knowing is half the battle. Check out the link below to read about the top 4 skimming threats US businesses are falling victim to. Think about these when using your credit card.

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Hear about fraud from the victims

The recent credit card fraud spree on Capitol Hill in Seattle has the victims creating a facebook page to discuss what happened to them.

[Ream More]

Fraud season is around the corner

Each year, during the five weeks between Black Friday and the end of the year also known as fraud season, Americans lose $1.1 billion - or $109,000 every minute

[READ MORE ON HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF]

Restaurants will have a new set of security standards to adhere to come January 1st 2010.

Most merchants look over these requirements but find that financially they are better off taking the risk. What they don't understand is that data theft can have severe repercussions including financial losses, hefty fines, and reputation damage. Let us help, call today (877)217-0707.

[READ MORE]

ATM Skimmers on the rise.

Check out the new report that ABC did on ATM skimming.

[CLICK HERE]

Update on the Capitol Hill Fraud Scheme

They determined that it was by some sort of software or physical device being used to capture the credit and debit card information. Read more below..

[READ MORE]

Three arrested in connection with credit card fraud at a Palm Desert Target location.

Going into the holiday season, make sure you are watching where your credit card goes when you hand it over to anyone. Below is a news report of employees at Target in Palm Desert using an electronic device (aka skimmer) to steal credit card information from unsuspecting customers.

[READ MORE]

Restaurants need to adhere to all PCI requirements in order to ensure the protection of sensitive consumer information

This is what the POS system provider to the Capitol Hill Seattle restaurant is saying now that they are the point of interest in the recent credit card fraud spree.

[READ MORE]

Payment card crimes increased from 100,000 affected cards in 2007 to 230,000 in 2009

Below is a story about a large compromise of customers credit and debit cards. Even their PIN numbers were compromised. With our daily posts on credit and debit card fraud, how has your debit card behavior changed, if at all?

[Click Here]

On average ID thieves rake in $30,000 per skimming incident.

Skimming Defined: In general skimming occurs when ID thieves secretly install special equipment in credit card readers either at the ATM, gas pump machine or any other card swiping device to capture the personal information on your card each time you swipe.

[CLICK HERE FOR WAYS TO AVOID ATM SKIMMING]

More come forward with the recent spree of credit/debit fraud in Seattle WA.

More people are coming forward with the recent fraud happening to credit and debit card in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle. Check out the story below to find out more.

[Click Here]

Hundreds of people hit in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle

A wave of complaints from Capitol Hill and First Hill area residents of fraudulent credit and bank card charges has a local bank looking for answers and police working their way through a big jump in fraud reports on Capitol Hill.

[CHECK OUT THE VIDEO]

The credit card industry has partnered with merchants to plug two of today’s biggest leaks

As consumers, we’ve grown accustomed to paying for purchases with credit cards wherever we go. Yet, that universal acceptance has caused us to think about how easily someone with bad intentions can gain access to our account numbers and our other personal information. The credit card industry has partnered with merchants to plug two of today’s biggest leaks

[READ MORE]

A new kind of card fraud to be aware of

A new kind of attack to your account where your card information is compromised with a skimmer, then given to people nationwide who will then use your card simultaneously. Check out more at the link below.

[CLICK HERE]

Fight Against Credit Card Fraud At The Pump

One NJ company steps up to the plate against Credit Card Skimming at the pump. Check out this article to learn more.

[CLICK HERE]

As we head into the holiday season

Make sure you are informed of the different threats to your Identity and cards. Take a minute and educate yourself. Hopefully the following article can help you in preventing any of these scams from ever happening.

[CLICK HERE]

Victim of Debit Card Fraud gets to see the theifs using her card

It was said in the video below that the victim, who lost $1500.00 had her card skimmed at a local restaurant, along with others. Usually victims done get to see the criminals eating on their dime. Check out the following video to see what happens after your card in compromised.

[CLICK HERE]

Fact of the Day:

Identity thieves stole $54 billion dollars in 2009, 75 percent of that fraud was in stolen or misused credit card numbers. Another 33 percent was in debit card fraud. (These numbers add up to more than one-hundred percent because some people had both credit and debit fraud.) Help spread the word about... Alpine Payment Systems Dine Fraud Free Program. Share this with your friends.

A 4 month investigation on a skimming ring unfolds

Two men are wanted in connection to a credit card skimming/ID theft case. Police say that the suspects were using credit card skimming equipment at local restaurants. They have not released the number of victims yet.

[Click Here]

What kind of business do you run?

Alpine Payment Systems specializes in customized rate plans for each of our customers to help you take credit and debit in the most secure way possible. Check out all the services Alpine Payment Systems offers at our website listed below.

Alpine Payment Systems

PCI compliance does not only pertain to POS systems

If you accept credit and debit as a form of payment, and you are not certain that you are processing those cards on a secure network or on secure equipment. You are at risk of compromise. Check out the story below:

[CLICK HERE]

PIN Debit has helped in decline of in-person card fraud

According to the PCI Council, the widespread use of chip and PIN technology has led to a significant decline in in-person credit card fraud, though cases of "card not present" fraud have increased.

So far, however, the question of adding PINs or fingerprint checks to U.S. credit card transactions has been moot. Credit card issuers in the United States have yet to embrace any new security techniques, biometric or otherwise, beyond the signature or, in some cases, photographs on cards. One impediment could be the relatively high cost that would be required to replace, throughout the country, all point-of-sale credit card readers with readers that work with PINs or fingerprint checks. Read more below:

[CLICK HERE]

Credit Card Skimming Operation

Check out how a credit card skimming operation works:

CLICK HERE

How Credit Card Skimming Works

Credit card skimming is an ongoing problem that continues to plague consumers. As more and more awareness is raised about credit card theft, people tend to be more careful about credit cards nowadays, but still credit card skimming continues to rise.

Today's thieves have graduated beyond stealing a number off a customer's card when they aren’t looking. Instead, they take your card information when you use it to purchase every day items.

Here's are some ways it works:

*Portable Skimmers

Portable skimmers are small devices that capture vital credit card information including the card owner's name, credit card number, expiration date and/or other security codes included with the card. How they work is the thief covertly skims the card through the device and collects the digital information. Later on, often after numerous credit card thefts have occurred, these card numbers are then re-written onto different cards. This is similar to the process that happens when you check into a hotel and they make you a new key card.

*Middlemen

Ringleaders of credit card fraud typically 'outsource' the actual theft to a middleman to act as the go between the victim and the fraudster. These middlemen are usually carefully selected employees of various business, chosen because of their job allowing them to have access to many credit cards per day. Workers chosen are typically lower salary employees who may be tempted to earn some extra cash. These employees are handed the skimmers. Fraud ringleaders typically pay on average between $10 and $30 per credit card, as reported before on our site, some go for as low as $.85 cents. The price depends on the credit limit and the bank issuing the card. The higher priced cards are ones that have high limits with banks that done specialize in fraud prevention.

*Installed Skimmers

Many banks and businesses that have their credit card processing set up as self-service could be used as the point of theft for credit card fraud. What thieves do is install skimming devices over the existing credit card scan in order to pilfer the information as consumers think they are giving it to the business and/or bank. Often they install small cameras which collect any PIN numbers which are used.

*Wireless and Laptops

Gas stations are commonly afflicted by this means of skimming. As more and more pumps become 'pay as you go', wireless technology is often used to send the credit information from the pump to the server. What thieves are doing is patiently sitting nearby with a laptop intercepting the data and downloading it to their personal computers. Often, skimmers are installed inside the pump.

*Businesses Used

Credit card skimming can happen anywhere, but the most common types of businesses targeted to act as the source of cards are usually restaurants, fast food drive through windows, bars and gas stations.

The reasons why these kinds of businesses are selected is simple. Customers typically allow their credit cards to leave their possession for brief periods of time so employees could scan their cards. In the case of gas stations, skimmers are often installed either inside or outside the pumps and thieves simply use wireless technologies and pilfer information as it travels wirelessly from the gas pump to the server. Employees monitoring would have no way to see something was amiss.

Must See!

Check out the following YouTube page. I was researching ATM skimmers and stumbled across this. This is posted only for educational purposes. I want you to see how easy it is for people to purchase what they need to skim your card/pin number.

YOUTUBE

Fake a Credit Card

Check out the following video to see how easy it is to fake a credit card.

[CLICK HERE]

Server at Famous Dave's BBQ pleads guilty to skimming customers cards

A woman accused of stealing debit and credit card numbers when she was a waitress has pleaded guilty to a fraud charge.

Elizabeth Lail-Caldare, 23, of Pensacola was sentenced to 11 months and 15 days in jail followed by 24 months of probation.

Lail-Caldare, arrested in May, was accused of using a skimmer to steal card numbers from people who dined at Famous Dave's barbecue restaurant on Bayou Boulevard in April.

Two other suspects were arrested in July.

Nigel Humphrey, 19, also known as Gaspar Bishop, is in Wakulla County Jail. Paul Adams, 46, also known as Trevor Hubbard, is in custody in Wayne County, Ohio.

Lail-Caldare told investigators that she met the men while working at Famous Dave's. She said she exchanged phone numbers with one of them and was asked to help in a credit card skimming operation, according to court records.

She told investigators that the men would bring her a skimmer before she went to work, and one of them would retrieve it after her shift ended. A skimmer is a device used to steal credit card numbers.

The Police Department suspects the men used the stolen card numbers to make fake credit and debit cards and buy American Express and Visa gift cards.

22% of US businesses meet PCI DSS requirements

Following PCI requirements can reduce the risk of a data breach for any business accepting credit/debit cards. Check out the following report on how 22% of US businesses meet the requirements to protect their customers card data.

[CLICK HERE]

Rise in Skimming cases in the San Diego area.

Authorities report a rise in Credit Card Skimming in the San Diego Area. Read more below

[CLICK HERE TO READ MORE]

Ask your server, "Is your restaurant PCI compliant" you may be glad you did.

Another case of a restaurant owner not making sure that their equipment was compliant and protecting their patrons card data. When you sit down at a restaurant, ask that your card not leave your hand, then ask, is your business PCI compliant? You will be enthralled by the response. If they take the steps that the Payment Card Industry require, you are less likely to lose your valuable card informaiton. If they have no clue what you are talking about, you may want to direct them to our blog.

FIND OUT MORE [CLICK HERE]

It doesnt take a degree from MIT

It's a common for most to think that you have to know a criminal or have years of technology know how to pull off a skimming ring. Well, it's not. Check out the link below to see how easy it is for someone to purchase everything they need to skim credit card information.

[LINK]

Man pleads guilty for skimming ring and is looking at 30+ years

We reported about a skimming case a a Washington DC Cheese Cake Factory a while back. The man responsible for that, among other restaurants, plead guilty and is not facing 32 years in prison.

STORY

What is Dine Fraud Free??

Check out this video to learn more! DINE FRAUD FREE

Payment card fraud swelled 32% from January to June 2010, compared to last year.

If your business accepts credit cards, you may want to beef up your credit card security systems because credit-card fraud has increased to “unprecedented levels” in the United States, according to new research. A new report reveals payment fraud swelled by 32 percent to $1.14 billion from January to June compared with the same time span last year. And there’s no clear sign of a slowdown. Call us to find out new ways to secure your payment system.

4th meal could end up costing you more than you anticipated!

At a Taco Bell in Michigan, the drive through attendants were being hired by a couple of masterminds who would pay them to skim customers cards. The attendants would then sell the equipment full of fraudulent card information for $100.00 to $4,000.00 back to the masterminds. One victim stated: “He had my card for a little bit, when we got home we got our bank statement and on it, we were missing $500.”

Read more: [Click Here]

"The restaurant had nothing to do with the fraud"

Below is a story that sparked our eye. Within the story one police officer states: "the restaurant had nothing to do with the fraud" Supposedly some Romanian was able to hack into the restaurant and steal the credit card information from customers. This is something that the restaurant can prevent by following the 1st step to the PCI data security requirements: "you must install and maintain a secure network firewall to protect data..." Our company has a Compliance guarantee as well as a solution to avoid card fraud at the point you hand your card over.

FULL ARTICLE