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Infographic: Voters Trust Banks & Card Companies with Security Information
Op-Ed: Banklike data security rules for retailers would reduce breaches
Target’s recent settlement with 47 states and the District of Columbia over the retailer’s 2013 data breach brought to mind this well-known John F. Kennedy quote: “There are risks and costs to a program of action — but they are far less than the long-range cost of comfortable inaction.” The $18 million settlement is in addition to $202 million in legal fees and other expenses resulting from the breach, in which hackers stole data from up to 40 million credit and debit cards of shoppers who had visited Target stores during the holiday season. Continue Reading
Wrong Again: Retailers Mislead on Data Breach
NBCC: Credit card fraud – we are all vulnerable
As the holiday shopping season approaches, people will descend in a frenzy onto retail stores large and small to spend their hard earned money on gifts for their loved ones. And with so many of these folks using credit and debit cards for purchases this is a perfect reminder to retailers that they must do everything in their power to protect customers from credit fraud. In the years since millions of customers were victims of data breaches at large retailers like Home Depot and Target, banks and credit card companies have taken initiatives to make sure their customers’ information is protected and their money safe. Improved technology like credit card chips have made cards more secure. Banks have fortified their customer databases with stronger firewalls against hackers. Continue Reading
NAFCU: Congress Can Prove Its Mettle by Standing Up for Consumers
While Election 2016 is in the rearview mirror, our work is not done. We must come together to ensure that we find common ground to build a better nation for everyone, regardless of political affiliation. One area that we can all agree needs improvement is data security. Of particular concern is the rampant growth of new retail data breaches, which have become all too regular. The nation’s data security standards must be improved to address this trend, and fortunately, we have a great foundation to build upon. Continue Reading
EPC Calls for Durbin Amendment Repeal and Better Security Standards: Support H.R. 5465, H.R. 5983 and H.R. 2205 to Protect Consumers
WASHINGTON (September 30, 2016) – Five years since the implementation of the ill-conceived Durbin Amendment, customers are still not seeing savings at the register and small businesses continue to feel the impacts of this legislation. Ahead of the October 1st anniversary of Durbin Amendment implementation, the Electronic Payments Coalition calls on legislators to continue their support of repeal by backing H.R. 5465 and section 335 of H.R. 5983. The Durbin Amendment continues to be nothing more than a merchant markup allowing big box retailers to pocket more than $36 billion to date—impairing small mom and pop stores and hurting customers in the process. “The numbers don’t lie: the Durbin Amendment has been a complete failure for everyone except the big-box stores, who have padded their bottom lines to the tune of six to eight billion dollars each year,” said Molly Wilkinson, executive director of the Electronic Payments Coalition. “Once consumers … Continue reading
Congress deserves answers on retailers’ merchant markup
Last month news broke that allergy sufferers were paying nearly 570 percent more for EpiPens than they were when the technology was introduced in 2007. Members of Congress, their constituents, and the media were outraged, and demanded an investigation. Rightly so. Consumers deserve answers. Just as outrageous is how big box retailers have spent the $36 billion in additional profits they’ve pocketed since debit card price controls were put into place six years ago at the behest of merchant lobbying groups. Members of Congress and their constituents deserve answers. Continue Reading
Resource: Retailers’ Focus on Interchange Fees Masks Opposition to Consumer Security Measures
A new resource from EPC highlights how retailers are masking their opposition to consumer security measures. Continue Reading
Infographic: Consumers Aren’t Benefiting from Merchant Markup
The Durbin Amendment, a.k.a. “merchant markup,” allows big box retailers to pocket $8 billion dollars a year from customers’ purchases. That’s $32 billion since Congress passed this law and retail groups are looking to increase their merchant markup even more. Additionally, big box retailers are not held to any federal standards to protect their customers, yet 90% of consumers agree they should be held to similar standards as banks and financial institutions when it comes to keeping customer data secure and private. The Data Security Act of 2015 would help protect consumers but retailers are fighting the bill to increase their bottom line. It’s time to put consumers first. Continue Reading
EPC Sends Letter of Support for H.R. 2205 to House Leadership
On May 10, 2016, EPC sent a letter to House leadership explaining why H.R. 2205 is needed to better protect consumer information. This letter is a follow-up to an earlier one from October.