Student shops with stolen credit cards, held

LUCKNOW: One person was arrested in connection with purchasing cellphones from a store in a shopping mall in Gomtinagar on stolen credit cards. T
he arrested identified himself as Gaurav Robinson of Indiranagar. According to the police, Gaurav is pursuing his BCA.

The police recovered from the accused two cellphones that he had purchased on the credit cards that belonged to Vikas Jhunjhunwala and Rakesh Verma. During interrogation, the accused revealed that he along with another aide of his, had snatched away the bag of a courier company employee (on September 25) which contained the credit cards he used to purchase the cellphones. Cops have even recovered the motorcycle used for executing the aforementioned loot.

Robinson told police that he along with two others has also been involved in several chain-snatching incidents in the recent past.

This is not for the first time that such a case has come to light where things have been purchased by using stolen credit cards. A couple of months ago three men were arrested by the district police as they were purchasing electronic appliances worth lakhs on a credit card that did not belong to them.

The arrested had identified themselves as Dhirendra Singh Chauhan, Abhinav Gupta and Amit Kumar Sharma. The incident was reported from Hazratganj police circle. According to the complaint lodged the accused in the case were purchasing laptops and other electronic appliances through a credit card which Amit Kumar claimed to be his own.

As one requires to give an identification proof in case of a purchase of more than Rs 10,000 by credit card, Amit was asked by the dealer to present his ID proof. Amit reportedly presented a forged ID proof which aroused the suspicion of the dealer and he informed the police. Later the three were arrested after a case was lodged against them.

News Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Fitch SMARTView: 13 U.S. Credit Card ABS Deals Placed 'Under Analysis'

NEW YORK, Sep 23, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Fitch Ratings has placed 13 of its U.S. Credit Card ABS deals 'Under Analysis', indicating that Fitch will be issuing a rating action within 30 days. SMARTView is Fitch's ongoing monthly surveillance process, with the 'Under Analysis' designation given to those deals which Fitch plans to further analyze over the next month. Of the 92 Fitch rated U.S. Credit Card ABS transactions, 79 U.S. Credit Card ABS deals were designated with a SMARTView date of Sep. 23, 2008, indicating that no in depth review is necessary.

As Fitch receives monthly information on structured finance transactions from trustees and servicers, Fitch analysts run the data through various internal algorithms that identify classes of a transaction as possible candidates for upgrade or downgrade. Fitch's analysts scrutinize the output to decide which deals need an in depth review, which are classified as 'under analysis', and those deals with no significant changes, which can be given a SMARTView date.

To review a list of deals 'Under Analysis', use the following link: www.fitchratings.com/smartview

SMARTView is available on the Fitch Ratings web site at www.fitchratings.com, along with the report titled 'SMARTView, Fitch U.S. Structured Finance Monthly Public Reviews'.

Fitch's rating definitions and the terms of use of such ratings are available on the agency's public site, www.fitchratings.com. Published ratings, criteria and methodologies are available from this site, at all times. Fitch's code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other relevant policies and procedures are also available from the 'Code of Conduct' section of this site.

News Source : http://www.marketwatch.com/

Troopers: Bronx man used ex-NYC Mayor Dinkins' former credit card number

SOUTHEAST - A Bronx man faces several felony charges after he was found carrying an American Express credit card with an account number that once belonged to former New York City Mayor David Dinkins, state police said today.

The suspect was arrested after impersonating another man while trying to withdraw thousands of dollars from the man's bank account, police said.

Troopers from the Brewster barracks responded to the Chase Bank branch inside the A&P Supermarket in the Lakeview Plaza on Route 22 around 4:40 p.m. yesterday. Bank employees became suspicious when the man tried to withdraw $4,900 from an account, Sgt. Joseph Malorgio said.

An investigation by Malorgio, Trooper Miguel Osorio and Investigator Armando Barquin showed that Christopher Bowman, 46, of the Bronx impersonated the actual account holder in an attempt to fraudulently withdraw the funds, police said.

Bowman was found with a bogus Louisiana state driver's license In addition to the American Express card, police said. Dinkins had canceled the American Express account after himself being a victim of fraud, police said.

Bowman was charged with attempted third-degree grand larceny, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, second-degree forgery, felonies, and second-degree criminal impersonation, a misdemeanor, police said.

He is being held today at the Putnam County jail in lieu of $25,000 cash bail or $50,000 bond, as set by Town Justice Richard Vercollone, and is due back in town court on Tuesday, police said.

Barquin is continuing the investigation, police said.

News Source : http://lohud.com/

Alliance Data Signs New Multi-Year Agreement to Launch Co-Brand Credit Card Program

DALLAS, Sept. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alliance Data SystemsCorporation (NYSE: ADS), a leading provider of loyalty and marketing solutionsderived from transaction-rich data, today announced it has signed a multi-yearagreement with AnnTaylor Stores Corporation (NYSE: ANN) to launch a newco-brand credit card program and to continue providing private label creditcard services. The agreement terms include launching a new co-brandMasterCard(R) credit card program and an exclusive points-based rewardsprogram for cardholders.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051024/ADSLOGO )

The services Alliance Data provides for both the co-brand and privatelabel credit card programs include account acquisition and activation;receivables funding; card authorization; card issuance; statement generation;direct mail and email marketing services; remittance processing; customerservice functions; and marketing services. Alliance Data will launch fourall-new card-plastic designs for Ann Taylor, including private label andco-brand cards for both the company's Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor LOFT brands.As is consistent with the private label credit card program, the co-brandoffering will be targeted to customers that meet Alliance Data's traditionalcredit quality standards.

Ivan Szeftel, president of Alliance Data's Retail Services, said, "We areexcited about expanding our relationship with Ann Taylor by providing thisfully integrated credit and marketing solution. Our programs are guided byanalytics and results-oriented marketing principles, and we are leveraging ourexpertise and the strength of the Ann Taylor brands to deliver a truly specialprogram to their clients."

About Alliance Data

Alliance Data (NYSE: ADS) is a leading provider of loyalty and marketingsolutions derived from transaction-rich data. The Company manages more than107 million consumer relationships for some of North America's mostrecognizable companies. Through the creation and deployment of customizedsolutions that change consumer behavior, Alliance Data enables its clients tocreate and enhance customer loyalty to build stronger, mutually beneficialrelationships with their customers. Headquartered in Dallas, Alliance Dataemploys approximately 7,000 associates at more than 50 locations worldwide.Alliance Data is a leading provider of marketing-driven credit solutions, andis the parent company of Epsilon(R), a leading provider of multi-channel,data-driven technologies and marketing services, and LoyaltyOne(TM), whichowns and operates the AIR MILES(R) Reward Program, Canada's premier coalitionloyalty program. For more information about the company, visit its web site,www.AllianceData.com.

News Source : http://www.ibtimes.com/

Legislation would require credit card companies to pay all sales taxes collected directly to the state

ALBANY – State Senator Rev. Ruben Diaz Wednesday urged Governor Paterson to support legislation to amend the tax law, in relation to requiring issuers of credit cards and debit cards to pay and collect sales and use taxes and pay those taxes directly to the state Department of Taxation and Finance.

“While the Governor is now pressuring small business owners to properly remit their business taxes in an effort to balance the state’s fiscal needs, Governor Paterson has had an opportunity to do this all session by supporting my legislation, Senate Bill 774, which will ensure that New York State will receive over 500 million dollars in uncollected sales taxes,” said Diaz.

The only ones who are opposed to this legislation are the credit card companies, said Diaz. “They are not going to like this, because it will tell the state how much money they are making in New York. There is no additional cost to the retailer’s or consumers, just an end to sales tax scofflaws.”

News Source : http://www.empirestatenews.net/

Cybercrime toll mounts for businesses

Retailer TigerDirect depends on technology, collaboration with peers to fight cybercrime

Cybercrime is more than a buzzword, it’s a critical business concern, say 1,387 IT professionals surveyed by security firm Finjan.

Ninety-one percent of respondents call cybercrime a “major business risk,” and 73% say they are more concerned about data theft than about downtime and loss of productivity from malware. In addition, 25% of respondents admit to data breaches in their organizations, according to the survey that Finjan conducted in July and released today.

Cybercrime’s impact is no surprise to those on the front lines.

“Fraud today is highly sophisticated, and the people doing it get smarter and smarter, so we have to, also,” says Gilbert Fiorentino, CEO at TigerDirect. The computer and electronics equipment retailer is a subsidiary of Systemax, which also owns CompUSA.

When credit cards are stolen in volume in big heists like the one perpetrated against TJX, those stolen cards are put to use by fraudsters who try to rip off stores like TigerDirect, Fiorentino says.

TigerDirect has 30 retail stores as well as an online Web sales operation for businesses and consumers. According to Fiorentino, the majority of the unrelenting attempts to hoodwink TigerDirect with stolen credit- and debit-cards will occur online in consumer sales.

A retailer like TigerDirect is an attractive target for those trying to use a stolen card because computer and electronics merchandise is easy to sell on the black market, Fiorentino points out.

One common ploy these days is for a fraudster to watch the home of a person whose credit-card information has been stolen, to determine if the person is out of the house most of the day, says Fiorentino. Fraudsters know retailers are more suspicious if a credit-card order requests delivery to a different address than the billing address of the credit card. So a fraudster might place orders to have equipment sent to the victim’s home, and then intercept it, pretending to live there.

TigerDirect’s home-grown antifraud system, developed over many years, seeks to raise a red flag on any manner of suspicious sales.

Red flags would be raised, for instance, for payment card data submitted from any IP address in Eastern Europe, or card numbers that have traversed through so-called anonymizer sites that hide the originating IP address. But there’s plenty of U.S. domestic online fraud attempts to worry about, too, Fiorentino adds.

News Source : http://www.networkworld.com/news/

Credit card with chip takes aim at fraud

Cashiers would no longer swipe debit cards in new system

VICTORIA -- A major shift in how debit and credit cards are used is taking shape across the country.

Canada's financial institutions have started to switch from the traditional "swipeable" card with a magnetic strip to a new card design incorporating a tiny computer chip. Customers are being asked to insert their card into a point-of-sale reader and typing in a code, instead of giving the card to a cashier to be swiped and then signing a receipt.

The change is intended to reduce the $300 million incurred annually in debit- and credit-card fraud in Canada. Card issuers have started offering the chip cards to customers across the country, with the expectation the cards will be in wide use by the end of 2010.

"It's excellent that they are doing something; credit-card fraud and chargebacks are an ongoing problem," said Kate Phoenix, vice-president of marketing and sales with Rogers' Chocolates. "When there is fraud or a chargeback the full cost is borne by the vendor -- when there is a false charge the banks credit the person, but they take it back from us."

Instead of swiping their card, customers will insert it into a reading device where it will remain until the end of the transaction. Like debit-card customers, credit-card users will also punch in a personal identification number and no longer have to sign a sales slip.

The director of payment system risk for Visa Canada said chip cards are typically being issued when old ones expire.

"We're very much at the start of all this," Gord Jamieson said.

"There's a low percentage of cards out there now, with volumes in the 85 to 90 per cent range expected by October 2010."

In addition to better security, the new cards should also cut checkout lineups. "It's actually a faster transaction," said Jamieson.

News Source : http://www.canada.com/

Want credit? Here are some important things to remember

Buying anything that requires credit is harder than it used to be. Banks who used to send credit card and mortgage refinancing solicitations on an almost daily basis have ratcheted up their lending standards, making borrowing more difficult for the most stalwart of consumers.

Deals, though, are available for financing everything from home equity loans to cars to flat screen TVs. Zero percent financing is still available at times. Experts advise consumers to be cautious. Stephanie Bittner of the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of the Delaware Valley also had the following tips:

* Before making any major purchase check your FICO credit report because many of them have errors which could be hurting your score. Fair Isaac, which developed the score, recommends that people "actively" seeking to improve their credit review their reports quarterly and even monthly.
* Make sure that your bills are current. Creditors won't look kindly on a consumer with past due accounts.
* Larger down payments are better in the eyes of banks because less money needs to be borrowed. "That means you are less of a risk to a lender," she said.
* Shop around. Banks have different lending standards and consumers may find better rates if they comparison shop
* Don't max out your credit. That will make it more difficult to borrow for future purchases.

Fair Isaac also notes that lenders take other factors into consideration for credit besides the FICO score, such as employment history. Consumers should also be aware that making too many requests for new credit is a red flag for lenders. "People with six inquiries or more on their credit reports are eight times more likely to declare bankruptcy than people with no inquiries on their reports," according to Fair Isaac.

Finally, consumers should be especially cautious about hiring companies that promise to "repair" their credit. As the Federal Trade Commission notes, "No one can legally remove accurate and timely negative information from a credit report." Many of these firms are probably scams.

Unfortunately, many consumers are seeing their credit scores plunge since they are falling behind in their bills. This makes it even more difficult for people who need to borrow money to get it.

source : http://www.google.com/news?

NBI nabs suspected credit card account hacker

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Monday night arrested a suspected member of an international credit card fraud syndicate in Iloilo City.

The NBI identified the suspect as Manuel Dumdum, a Filipino-American and a suspected member of the "Asian Boys" group that has an alleged link to the international group European Mafia.

Dumdum was arrested with a female companion, Marissa Yrezabal, during a raid conducted by the NBI in a subdivision in Mandurriao district on Monday night.

The NBI said Dumdum's arrest was a result of a three-month surveillance and background investigations.

Seized from the suspects were several identification cards, fake credit cards, computer equipment and other paraphernalia being used to create fake credit and ATM cards.

The NBI said Dumdum is involved in hacking ATM and credit card accounts.

It said the suspect was also arrested last year based on the same crime. It was not, however, clear how the suspect was able to get out of jail.

Charges for violation of Republic Act 8484 or The Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998 are being readied against the suspects.

News Source : http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/

How credit card use impacts your FICO credit score

Your FICO credit score is made up of five factors of varying importance. Here's how your credit card use (or lack thereof) can affect each of the components.

Note that the weighted importance of the categories are averages. For some people - such those who haven't been using credit for long - certain categories may count more heavily.

_Payment History. This accounts for 35 percent of your FICO score. If you have any late payments, the score will take into account how late you were, how much was owed and how many late payments there were. If your overall report is strong, a few late payments shouldn't be a score killer.

_Credit Use. Thirty percent of your score is determined by your credit utilization ratio, which measures your outstanding balance against your available credit. So if you have outstanding debt and cancel a credit card, losing that line of credit will mean you're using up more of your credit - which will raise your credit utilization and thus lower your score.

Experts say it's best to use less than 30 percent of your available credit. Generally speaking, the lower the percentage the better.

_Length of Credit History. This determines 15 percent of your score. So if you're closing credit cards, keep the card you've had the longest.

One alternative to closing your accounts is letting them sit. But you should check on them occasionally to make sure identity thieves aren't using them.

source : http://www.forbes.com

Kaulkin Ginsberg Report Says Increased College Student Credit Card Debt Causing Financial Straits for Graduating Students

ROCKVILLE, Md., Sep 10, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- College students are known for carrying student loan debt; however a new report, The Student Market for Credit Cards: Issues and Trends, finds that more of this year's seniors will be facing a "perfect storm" of financial struggle after graduation, especially due to increased college student credit card debt.

The convergence of higher student loan debt, student attitudes toward credit card debt, and a dim employment outlook are just some of the factors that will cause difficult circumstances for some graduating college students this year, according to the report from Kaulkin Ginsberg, the leading strategic advisor to the debt collection / accounts receivable management industry.

"Students are using credit cards as a last resort to pick up the slack when they have difficulty getting loans or jobs to cover their expenses," noted Dimitri Michaud, Kaulkin Ginsberg Consumer Finance Analyst and author of the report. "With fewer loans and jobs available, you have the makings of an increase in college student credit card debt on top of existing student loan debt."

Michaud added that government loans and grants have failed to keep pace with educational costs, and ten percent of student borrowers now rely on private loans to bridge the gap. The recent credit crisis has impacted the ability of students to obtain these private loans, however. More than two dozen lenders, including Bank of America, Citigroup and Wachovia, stopped or curtailed their private lending to students over the summer.

"Separate studies by the American Council on Education and by U.S. PIRG both found that roughly 25 percent of student credit card holders used their cards to pay for some portion of their tuition," said Michaud. "With major lenders now limiting the availability of private student loans, we may see that percentage of college students paying a portion of tuition on credit cards increase, thus increasing college student credit card debt levels."

Attitudes toward credit may also be a factor in increased college student credit card debt. More than 25 percent of college students think it is reasonable to use their credit cards as a means to raise cash, according to a recent National Association of Retail Collection Attorneys (NARCA) survey. The NARCA survey also revealed that 31 percent of those polled did not worry about college student credit card debt because they believed they could pay back outstanding balances once they were out of school and earning a regular paycheck.

This optimism may be ill-founded, especially for the younger portion of the work force. Unemployment numbers for individuals between the ages of 16 and 19 - years that encompass a good portion of the college student population - rose steadily in May, June, and July - from 18.7 percent, to 18.1 percent, to 20.3 percent respectively. This means that many students were unable to earn income during the summer break, and the outlook for employment after graduation may be similarly bleak.

source : http://www.google.com/news?