South Carolina suffers theft of 3.6M social security numbers

A server holding taxpayer and credit card information of residents of
the US state of South Carolina has been breached, resulting in the
exposure of 3.6 million social security numbers and 387,000 credit
cards.

In a press conference late last Friday in the US, representatives from
the state Department of Revenue confirmed the breach and the fact
that, of the credit cards, 16,000 were stored without encryption.

State Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel told reporters that the
investigation so far had revealed that the intrusion had occurred as
early as August 27 this year, and had confirmed that the IP address
through which the attack originated was foreign in nature.

US Secret Service Agent Michael Williams said that its agency received
information regarding a possible incident on October 10, and it was at
this point that other law enforcement agencies and the governor were
informed of the breach.

As part of its response, independent information security company
Mandiant was engaged to provide advice on how to proceed. Mandiant
Director Marshall Heilman said that its first steps were to remove the
attacker's known access, deter the attack with additional security
measures, and enhance the systems' logging to enable law enforcement
to detect if the attacker returned.

"These types of breaches are not uncommon — they actually happen every
day. Most of them do not make the news, unless they are very large,"
Heilman said.

South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley has already appointed Inspector
General Patrick Maley to further look at the state's information
security measures. Maley said that its first plan of order is to
establish a full time task force to examine each of the state's
systems and "triage" them.

But Haley is not just taking a defensive approach to the breach,
stating that she wants the person held accountable for their actions,
and "slammed against the wall."

"South Carolina has come under attack, but South Carolina is going to
fight back in every way possible," she said.

"It's no longer about just inside hackers, it's about international hackers."

"Our state will respond with a big, large-scale plan that is somewhat
unprecedented, to take care of this problem."

However, with the investigation still ongoing, Keel has stated that
"no further information regarding specifics of the investigation will
be released at this time," as the disclosure of more information could
hinder efforts to bring the hacker to justice.

Haley asked South Carolina residents for patience, stating that "when
any law enforcement division tells you, 'this will hurt our situation
for this to get out', we need to be conscious of the fact that we need
to let them to their job."

"What were my instructions to [law enforcement]? Slam him to the wall.
The only way I can make sure that can happens is that I give them the
ability to do their job without any confusion, and be able to get this
person. That's what I want. I want to be able to get this person and
make sure he can never do this to any body or any state."

How to maximize credit card rewards at restaurants

Enjoying a meal at a restaurant can be a luxury for the frugal while it is a necessity for those who travel for business or pleasure. And while many profess the need to save money on dining by skipping appetizers, drinks, or desert, there are ways to order whatever you want while saving money by using your credit cards strategically.

First, choose the best credit card for eating out. Currently, the top rewards card for dining is the Citi Forward Visa (V). It offers five ThankYou points for each dollar spent at restaurants and on entertainment. Points can then be redeemed for one cent each towards gift cards or flights booked through Citi (C). The American Express (AXP) Blue Sky Preferred returns 2.66 cents back in statement credits for each dollar spent at restaurants, hotels, and on car rentals. Other contenders are the Sapphire and Sapphire Preferred cards from Chase which offer two Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent on travel and dining.

Next, be sure to register your cards with your favorite airline's dining program. Delta (DAL), United (UAL), American Airlines, US Airways (LCC), Southwest Airlines (LUV) and others all offer similar dining programs that feature up to five miles per dollar spent at eligible restaurants. Many of these programs also include valuable bonus offers. For example, the Delta SkyMiles program currently offers an additional 1,200 bonus miles after spending $25 in dining within your first 30 days of enrollment.

• Can you really get your credit score for free?
• The best travel perks your credit card can get you
• The rewards card catch everyone forgets: Annual fees

Another way to leverage your credit card rewards is to purchase gift cards through your credit card's online shopping portal. For example, the Chase (JPM) Ultimate Rewards website offers an additional 12 points per dollar when you purchase discount certificates at Restaurant.com.

But what you probably do not want to do is to redeem points and miles for gift cards valid at restaurants. For instance, the Membership Rewards program from American Express offers gift cards for many restaurant chains at a rate of one cent per point. At that rate, you might as well redeem your points for cash back and earn more points when you purchase dinner. Even its special deals, such as 4,250 points for a $50 gift certificate at Ruth's Chris Steak House, only equates to about 1.18 cents in value per point. In contrast, 100,000 Membership Rewards points could be transferred to miles with one of 16 different airline partners in order to earn a business class award ticket to Europe, easily worth 4-8 cents per point.

There are many ways to use your credit card to earn points, miles, and cash back when visiting restaurants. But just be sure not to waste your precious credit card rewards on low value gift cards.

Justin Bieber stole credit card

Justin Bieber paid for his penis enlargement with a stolen credit card, and cheated on girlfriend Selena Gomez with Ke$ha, Rihanna and Penelope Cruz, according to a new lawsuit.

Bieber has been sued in Michigan by a man claiming to be Gomez's father, who makes some of the most insane allegations ever documented in court, TMZ reported.

The man is reported to have said in the court documents that Bieber borrowed 426.78 dollars from him to pay for an abortion for Gomez.

"This money was used as abortion money because Justin Bieber got my daughter Selena pregnant in my bedroom, on my canadian bear rug," he wrote.

The most ludicrous claim in the lawsuit regards singer Usher, who signed Bieber to his label.

"Usher Raymond came to my house on the forth (sic) of july 2012 and sodomised me with a firework and lit it inside my anal area while blaring kate perry (sic) firework song in my ear drum," the man said.

MasterCard and Banca Monte Paschi Belgio launch dual debit-credit card

MasterCard and Belgium's Banca Monte Paschi Belgio have unveiled a dual debit and credit card which also includes a display screen for passcodes that secure online payments.

Launching early next month, the 'PaschiCombo' card - which also includes PayPass contactless functionality - comprises of a Maestro debit card on one side and MasterCard credit card on the other.

This, claim the partners, makes it the most widely accepted in the world, covering terminals at 14 million Maestro-friendly merchants and 34 million MasterCard outlets.

When customers want to make a purchase, they simple insert their PaschiCombo card into a conventional payment terminal and use the keypad to select to pay with Maestro for a debit payment or with MasterCard for a credit payment.

Meanwhile, the card also includes a button, which users press to create a unique pass code which appears on a display screen and can be entered online to secure Web purchases.

Dino Albanese, member, management committee, Banca Monte Paschi Belgio, says: "We may be the oldest bank in the world today, but we also want to be the most innovative. The PaschiCombo card is without doubt the most innovative card in the world, accepted by the most extensive network in the world."

Dynamics launches its ePlate battery-powered credit card to create 'payment apps'

Dynamics is hoping to turn the credit card and payment industries upside down with an innovative new kind of smart card and payment system. The ePlate system is a way for developers to get direct data on customer purchases and extra revenues from each transaction via "payment apps." With ePlate, Dynamics hopes to change the way people pay for goods and services by motivating them to earn some very specific rewards from their favorite book authors or other goods providers. And, in a twist that could motivate a lot of partners to join the rewards program, the book author or the goods providers get a cut of every transaction made with the credit card.

That completely changes the way the card operates and the benefit that the consumer receives from using it. Dynamics' system includes the ePlate payment device, which is a battery-powered Visa credit card that allows a consumer to change the app that is running on the card. You can apply for a card today on Dynamics' site, and you can change the reward you earn with every purchase.

Dynamics has gathered a bunch of partners to participate in what it calls an "ecosystem of experience providers." Each delivers an individualized brand experience to the consumer via an app on the ePlate card. Before purchasing, a consumer selects multiple experience apps on their smartphone, tablet, or computer to port to their ePlate device. At the time of purchase, the consumer can use different buttons on the ePlate device to select different "experience apps." Those apps give the consumer a reward whenever they use the card.

Each experience provider gets 50 basis points, or half a percent of the value of every transaction. So for a $100 purchase, the provider gets 50 cents.

Dynamics founder and chief executive Jeff Mullen (pictured right), said in an interview with VentureBeat, "You can get your reward before you put your card into your wallet."

More than 30 apps will be available at launch. The first generation device has two buttons on it, so you can store two different applications on the card. You can use your PC or smartphone to select the experience apps that you want to have on the card.

The system is the brainchild of Mullen, who said his team worked on the technology for 2.5 years.

The ePlate cards have batteries that last three years and they work with the existing 60 million mag-stripe credit card readers in the market today. The cards have 70 electronic components embedded within a plastic card.

"We form the card around the electronics," Mullen said.

He said that integrating ePlate into the payment system "is so fast that consumer benefits for an 'app' will be delivered before consumers can even put their ePlate device back into their wallet."

He added, "The result of the ePlate device is a new payments landscape – where a consumer can earn exclusive, disproportionately valued benefits instantly in ways never before envisioned.  This holiday season, consumers will have a second decision to make at the point-of-sale – first, what to purchase; and second, what app to experience with that purchase."

One example of an experience app comes from Warren Adler, the best-selling author of dozens of books including The War of the Roses, which was made into a popular film. Each time a consumer spends $400, he or she earns one of 29 different Warren Adler ebooks. That may be a $5 to $15 value for the consumer (depending on the price of the eBook), and $2 goes to Adler himself.

Within seconds of qualifying for the purchase, the consumer gets an email with a link to instantly download the book. Adler has also written an exclusive novel for ePlate users. With every earned book, the consumer earns a chapter of the new exclusive work. Any consumer that earns all 29 Warren Adler eBooks also gets a signed physical copy of The War of the Roses delivered to his or her doorstep, Mullen said.

When I saw the ePlate platform, I thought this was an innovative way to engage my fans," said Adler. "I also wanted to reward them with a unique way to experience more of my books and a way to reward them with an exclusive work."

Dark Horse Comics has created two new comic book series for ePlate, including one called Conan: The Phantoms of the Black Coast. Another is the team-up of two separate characters: X and Ghost and Captain Midnight. Upper Deck, the trading card company, will introduce a series of collectible cards.

Founded in 2007, Dynamics is a familiar company to readers of VentureBeat. The company debuted at the DEMO conference in September, 2010, and walked away with the top $1 million prize as DEMOgod. In June 2011, Dynamics raised $35 million from Bain Capital Ventures for its computerized smart cards and payment systems. To date, the company has raised $40.7 million. And Mullen appeared at the DEMO Spring 2012 conference in April to unveil the first details of the ePlate payment system. The company has almost 100 employees, up from 24 employees a little more than a year ago.

Consumers can apply for a Dynamics ePlate credit card on the company's web site.

"We are covering all of the categories and will introduce new experiences as we go," Mullen said. "You'll see individuals like celebrities, authors and athletes. We can partner with time-sensitive and seasonal brands. And we can partner with the brands you wouldn't see on a credit card."

RBS launches 23-month interest-free balance transfer credit card

The competition for balance transfer credit card customers has intensified today after the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and NatWest unveiled new 23-month interest-free credit card offer.

Both RBS and NatWest have launched new balance transfer cards that will enable them to join Barclaycard and HSBC at the top of the best-buy tables for the length of the interest-free period, though Barclaycard still trumps the new products with a lower balance transfer fee of 2.8 per cent.

RBS's card charges a fee of 3.5 per cent on the balance transferred and HSBC charges 3.3 per cent.

MBNA also joined the party today with the launch of a 14-month interest-free offer on its balance transfer credit card. Although the zero-interest period is not as long, the fee is MBNA's lowest ever at just 1.25 per cent.

RBS's Platinum Extended Balance Transfer Card also offers six months interest-free on purchases and has an interest rate of 17.9 per cent.

However, the new card may not be available to everyone as the bank's last balance transfer card required applicants to have a spotless credit record and it is likely that the same conditions will apply.

Michael Ossei, personal finance expert at uSwitch.com, says: "Competition in the credit card market is fierce and it's good to see NatWest and RBS now going into battle with Barclaycard, which currently tops the tables with its 23-month 0% balance transfer card.

"These 0% balance transfer cards can save borrowers hundreds of pounds in interest, but consumers must be aware of the fees. The NatWest and RBS card carries a 3.5% fee, compared to Barclaycard's 2.8% - this means transferring a typical £5,000 balance to the NatWest and RBS card will cost £175, as opposed to £140 with Barclaycard.

"However, as always the devil lies in the detail. A market-leading product is only beneficial to consumers if they can actually get their hands on it. NatWest's previous 22-month balance transfer card proved extremely elusive for those without a squeaky clean credit rating."

 

Smart things to know about interest charged on credit cards

Here is a look at 5 things you should know about the interest charged on credit cards

1) Interest is charged on the outstanding balance on a credit card if only the minimum or partial amount is paid by the specified date, not the full amount that is due. This is called the 'revolving credit facility'.

2) There is an interest-free period, during which the amount used on a credit card does not attract any interest. This is the duration between the first day of the billing cycle and the day on which the payment is due.

3) If a credit card is on revolving credit, all new purchases on the card will also attract the interest rate from the transaction date till such time that the dues are cleared. There is no interest-free period till all the dues are paid.

4) The interest rate is typically disclosed by the credit card companies as a monthly percentage. The interest payable depends on the rate, outstanding amount and the number of days for which the amount due remains unpaid.

5) A late payment fee is charged if the due amount is not paid by the specified date. Service tax is applicable on interest and other fees and is included to ascertain the total amount that is due.

The Most Affordable Methods for Accepting Credit Card Payments

If your online business accepts credit card payments, you likely understand that there are an incredible number of fees involved in doing so. You will be charged transaction fees, interchange fees and authorization fees, among others. Accepting a credit card payment for a $100 invoice can easily cost you between $2.00 and $5.00, depending on the third-party processor you choose to use. If you are fed up with the fees associated with the acceptance of credit cards, you have options. Here are five online alternatives to traditional merchant accounts:

 

1. PayPal.com
 
PayPal is a great alternative to merchant accounts, provided you are selling is relatively inexpensive. If the items that you sell or the services that you provide cost less than $1,000, PayPal can be your best friend. The fees for accepting payments via Paypalare low enough to make it worth using instead of a traditional merchant account. PayPal is also convenient for your customers who can pay online or in person using their PayPal MasterCard debit card. Payments that you receive can then be transferred into your business checking account for free.
 
2. E-Junkie.com
 
If you have a website and sell your goods or services online, E-Junkie can provide you with a virtual shopping cart, buy now buttons and can help with inventory management. Rather than acting as a third-party, E-Junkie allows users to pay for your goods and services in a variety of ways, including PayPal, Google Checkout, ClickBank and 2CheckOut, among others. Plan levels with E-Junkie vary from $5 per month to $265 per month, depending on how many items you offer for sale. Free checkouts and unlimited sales are provided with all plans.
 
3. Google Checkout
 
Google Checkout works in a similar way to PayPal in that customers can purchase your goods through a simplified online payment platform. Google Checkout touts itself as one of the best online payment options with no setup, gateway or monthly fees charged to your business. Google Checkout operates on a tiered system where fees per transaction are concerned. If you have less than $3,000 in monthly sales, for instance, you will be charged 2.9 percent, plus $0.30, per transaction. Once you reach over $100,000 in sales per month, your transaction fees will fall to 1.9 percent plus $0.30.
 
4. Yahoo Merchant Services
 
Yahoo Merchant Services allows virtual store owners to accept PayPal payments, checks, POs, CODs, money orders, credit and debit cards. Payments are sent through the FDMS payment gateway at no charge to the business owner. Like E-Junkie, Yahoo features include those that keep track of inventory, manage shopping carts and orders, and even provide site statistics at a glance.
 
5. Bill Me Later
 
Bill Me Later is a service of PayPal that allows consumers to pay bills in installments. There are a number of options for merchants when it comes to credit card processing and more customers are turning toward the service as an option. While there are different fee levels for business owners, those who benefit most are merchants who sell high-dollar items.
 
Relying on technology as a means of receiving payment can be nerve-wracking at first, but if you want to keep your business on track, you must look for ways in which you can cut costs whenever possible. Go here to find ways to keep your business on the right path. Instead of paying the high fees associated with traditional merchant accounts, look to the five options above for your credit card processing needs. At the end of the day, even saving one percent on every transaction can save you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars per year.

American Express Sees Higher Profit in Q3;Reported Increase in Credit Card Spending (AXP)

Global service company, American Express Company(AXP) on Thursday reported higher earnings for their third quarter.

The New York based company announced that their third quarter revenue increased by 4 percent from $7.57 billion to $7.87 billion, and their net income rose by one percent.

The company reported profit of $1.25 billion, or $1.09 a share, compared with $1.24, or $1.03 a share from last year's third quarter. Analysts had predicted sales of $7.9 billion, or $1.09 per share.

The increase in revenue is a result of lower expenses and increased credit card spending by their customers. Spending by the company's customers increased by 8% during the July to September period, compared to same period of time last year. Global spending increased by 6%.

American Express shares were down 67 cents, or 1.13% during premarket trading Thursday.

The Bottom Line

American Express Company(AXP) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.4 out of 5 stars.

Mastercard under fire for tracking customer credit card purchases to sell to advertisers

Mastercard has come under fire for tracking its US customer's purchases and selling the data to advertisers.
The credit card company's MasterCard Advisors Media Solutions Group boasts it can target the most affluent customers and tell advertisers who is most likely to buy their products.
The firm does this by tracking a consumer's credit card details - although it says their identity remains secret.
However, it refuses to reveal how the system works, and a privacy group today accused the firm of 'treating details of our personal behaviour like their own property.'

'The foundation of all of our solutions is transaction data,' Susan Grossman, senior vice president at MasterCard Advisors Media Solutions Group said in a presentation seen by MailOnline.
When a consumer swipes a credit card in a store, she says MasterCard's data-packaging division receives information about the date, time, amount and merchant.
The firm tracks billions of anonymous transactions from customers, which it then aggregates into small segments which comprise of similar transactions.

This allows the firm to sell details of these very specific 'segments' of data to advertisers.

'What if you could know the biggest week for spend and then reach those shoppers who are twice as likely to spend leading up to that week and then create campaigns?', the firm asks in an online presentation .
Called 'Leveraging MasterCard Data Insights to Reach Holiday Shoppers', the presentation is designed to attract advertisers.
However, the firm refuses to reveal how offline MasterCard purchases would follow you online to make you a target for specific ads.

In the presentation, Grossman called MasterCard's methods 'proprietary.'

But she says none of the data collected or sold includes personally identifiable information such as names or addresses.
MasterCard, which processes 34 billion transactions a year in 210 countries and territories, said it started the initiative in February.

Ms Grossman said protecting privacy was 'core' to MasterCard's values.
'We recognise that consumers entrust us with their information so it is of the utmost importance that we ensure no individual or personally identifiable information is used in our media solutions product,' she said.
Ms Grossman said the company's main clients for much of their history had been their issuing banks and for them MasterCard did a significant amount of statistical modelling and predictive modelling and found that those propensity models were application to companies other than banks, such as media.
Nick Pickles, director of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said: 'If this data has value, then it should be up to Mastercard to ask customers for permission to use their information and offer consumers something in return.

'Instead they are treating details of our personal behaviour like their own property to be bundled up and sold on without any regard to what customers might want.
'Have Mastercard made any effort to seek customer's consent for processing their shopping habits and selling it on? How do consumers opt out? It's exactly this kind of behaviour that leads consumers to question whether companies are more interested in their own profit than respecting people's privacy.'

Mastercard today confirmed the scheme's existence.

A spokesman for Mastercard said: 'MasterCard is committed to protecting individual privacy.

'No personally identifiable information is collected, disclosed or used in the analysis and development of any products or services.
'In creating MasterCard Audiences, MasterCard uses aggregated and anonymized transaction data.

'MasterCard's transaction data does not contain the cardholder's name or any other personal data.
'The service leverages anonymized and aggregated transaction data to provide clients with insight into trends around US consumer buying behavior based on custom audience segments or specified categories including Restaurant, Hotel, Travel, Retail, Financial Services, Automotive, Entertainment, and Telco/Cable.'

The firm also said the scheme was only running in the US.

UAE banks turn on credit tap: Raise limits, issue new cards… not even asked for

Customers of at least three major banks in the UAE have informed this website that they have received an increased credit limit they did not ask for and/or a free, new credit card, again, not requested.

One bank rewarded a select batch of "loyal" customers with an increased allowance on their credit cards, without any prior intimation.

When the customer contacted the call centre agent, she was informed that an SMS had been sent out to every one informing of the increase.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7, the customer in question said,  "I never got any SMS and only when I swiped my credit card at a store did I learn that my credit limit was raised."

"It's strange, how, I wasn't even asked whether I wanted more cash allowance or not," she added.

When Emirates24|7 contacted the bank's call centre, they confirmed the mark-up and said it was a show of "appreciation" for select customers.

"The mark-up ranges from Dh1,000 to Dh10,000," the agent said.

He also insisted the bank had sought approval via SMS.

One customer argued: "Unrequested hikes in credit limit could tempt many to step over their budget and splurge.

"It could lead to a debt trap if the customer is not careful."

When the customer informed the bank that she never received any text message, she was told that it might have been an oversight and she could opt out at any time.

"Isn't it strange that I have to reject an offer I never asked for in the first place?"

Another resident complained that he actually got a credit card that he had never applied for.

"I was surprised when I got a call from the bank telling me that I will receive my new credit card shortly.

"In fact, the courier with the card arrived an hour after that call," says RM.

"I told them I didn't want it and sent it back."

Ritesh, who already has a car loan with the bank, wasn't keen on taking up on an unwanted cash offer.

A spokesperson for Mashreq told this website: "We have not revised our credit strategy. Nothing of that sort in Mashreq."

At the time of publishing EmiratesNBD had still to revert on their current credit policy.

 

Credit card cashback deals: Can you really get 6pc?

Shoppers are being offered up to 6 pc cashback for simply spending on plastic.
Card companies are locked in a war over perks as they try to sign up new customers.
But these cash rewards can be loaded with tricks such as introductory offers, a ceiling on how much you can earn and stringent terms and conditions.

Annual fees of up to £25 are also muddying the waters and risk wiping out gains for borrowers who struggle to repay their spending each month.
'These products are getting more complex and tend to favour certain shopping types — for example, only paying if you shop exclusively with a small number of retailers or if you're a regular driver who fills their tank once a week,' says Kevin Mountford, head of banking at price comparison website Moneysupermarket.
'It's vital to ensure you check the details and go for the one that best reflects your behaviour.'
The cashback card battle hotted up last week with the launch of Barclaycard's latest deal.
With its offer of up to 6 pc on spending, it will pay £221 tax-free a year to anyone who piles £1,000 a month on to the card.

For a large family with big bills, 6 pc could add up to much more.
If your supermarket spend, fuel costs and general shopping added up to £3,000 a month, Barclaycard would pay you £521 each year.
But the card carries onerous terms and conditions.
The 6 pc is only for three months, and is limited to £120.
Barclaycard also insists you make at least 15 purchases a month to qualify for its 6 pc deal.
Fail to do so and you'll earn only 0.5 pc on all spending.
In the second year you have the card, the loss of the 6 pc cashback will be keenly felt.
On a £10,000 annual spend (assuming five top purchases at £75 to meet further terms and conditions), the cashback drops from £175 to £110, calculations from Moneysavingexpert show.
Similarly, American Express offers 5 pc cashback, but only for three months. After this, the rate plummets to 1.25 pc.
Rival Santander pays up to 3 pc cashback, but it is specifically targeted — 1 pc on supermarket spend, 2 pc in department stores and 3 pc on petrol.
Spend £3,000 across 12 months — 10 pc in supermarkets, 10 pc on fuel and 5 pc in department stores — and the annual fee of £24 will actually leave you £9 worse off.
But for big spenders, it can be worth it.
Separate figures from Money-supermarket highlight how a family spending £1,500 or more on the card each month, including lots on fuel — perhaps with two cars — would earn £272 a year.
On a £3,000 monthly spend, the annual benefit with Santander is £474.
But those looking to profit from their big fuel spend have their 3 pc cashback capped at £108 a year.
And the number of retailers allowing you the 2 pc cashback is limited. Worse, the bank makes it hard to see the names of retailers involved.
Though it includes Debenhams and John Lewis, rather than list these on its website, it asks you to type in the store's name to see if it qualifies.
Cashback credit cards have mushroomed in popularity over the past few years, offering ever greater sums.
Lenders are keen to attract borrowers to reward cards, hoping they will slip up and not repay their debt every month — losing out on the cashback benefit.
'This is why the golden rule for any borrower applying for a cashback card is to ensure your spending is always paid off each month,' says Justin Modray at financial advice site Candidmoney.
'The easiest way to do this is set up a direct debit that clears your debt each month. But make sure you've always got enough funds available to do this.'
Lenders are also tapping into demand from customers keen to trade their loyalty to a store for what is effectively money off.
In July, for example, Asda launched its Money credit card. This pays 1 pc cashback on all  in-store shopping and at any Asda petrol station, plus 0.5 pc on all spending elsewhere.
Cashback cards will work only for borrowers who can be sure to repay all their spending each month.
If not repaying each month is a distinct possibility, instead pick a card that charges you the lowest interest on your spending.

Credit Card Guide Helps People to Avoid Exorbitant Fees and Sky High Rates

Art Branch, Inc., the parent company of CreditCardReview.ca announced today the publication of a low-interest credit card guide (http://www.creditcardreview.ca/low-interest-creditcards-9/), intended for Canadian consumers who are looking for affordable credit solutions.

The new guide was created by the content development team at Art Branch, Inc. and is the result of extensive research on popular Canadian credit cards. The guide was published on CreditCardReview.ca, which presents in-dept reviews of credit cards available to consumers and small businesses in Canada. The section was added in response to requests from visitors and features reviews and comparisons of low-interest credit cards.

"Affordable credit is very important for Canadian consumers and small businesses; however, many can't borrow funds at reasonable rates. Canadians who are looking for credit but are unable to get an unsecured credit line from their bank may want to look at low-interest credit cards," said John Wilson, marketing consultant at Art Branch, Inc.

The new guide presents 17 low-interest credit cards offered by AMEX, VISA and MasterCard. Costumers have the opportunity to compare interest rates and annual fees and will find a comprehensive review for each product.

Some people have fair or less-than-perfect credit scores, and this makes them unlikely candidates for a low-cost credit line from their bank. While there are better borrowing options than a credit card, a low-interest card is a good choice compared to payday loans and other products with extremely high interest rates. Some people villainize credit cards, and there are urban legends and annoying myths about them. The truth is that using a low-interest card can help people in lean days. Financial setbacks happen for many reasons – death of a partner, major illness, demotion, and divorce. Even the rich and famous have been hit by tough times, and some celebrities live under huge amounts of debt. While an emergency fund can cover financial gaps, few people can afford such luxuries. A low-interest credit card is a good option for people who are coping with a major, life-changing event. It is not a tool to rectify one's financial woes, but it allows recession-hit people and those in financial straits to borrow at reasonable rates.

Google eyes Australia's credit card business

Google has signalled the potential expansion of its new credit card offering in Australia in the opening salvo of an offensive against the financial services industry.
 
Last week the technology giant used its huge cash reserves to launch its first credit card in the US and the UK – AdWords Business Credit.
 
The pilot project, which is supported by Barclays Bank and Mastercard in the UK, is seen as a small but important step towards taking on the traditional banks on their own turf.
 
But Google Australia told The Australian Financial Review  the US and UK were just the beginning.
 
"The US and UK are not the only countries where our advertisers face limited access to credit," he said. "Google is interested in using its financial resources to help advertisers with access to ample credit at attractive rates wherever possible."

Innovation wave two

 
According to a report by the Financial Times, businesses can borrow up to $US100,000 a month to pay for Google Adwords, the world's biggest internet advertising system.
 
The interest rates of 8.99 per cent in the US and 11.9 per cent in the UK are lower than most other credit cards.
 
Capgemini financial services head René Borghgraef said the move did not represent new technology but was a significant step into financial services for a company that was born as a internet search engine.
 
"I think this is definitely part of what we call the 'innovation wave two'," he said. "The front-end customer-facing space . . . is where [Google] is changing the market dramatically.
 
"I think this is probably a first step for Google . . . and while this is a business-to-business offering, it will probably bring this into the consumer market as well."

tech firms next big threat

 
The move by the tech giant to offer traditional banking services is further confirmation of warnings by analysts and banking chiefs around the world about the rising threat of technology companies in the traditional banking space.
 
Commonwealth Bank's Ian Narev told The Australian Financial Review  in June that multinational tech firms such as Google and Facebook were the next big threats.
 
"Regardless of the names, whether it be Google or Facebook, the principle is the same: they have very high technology capabilities, very strong brand appeal, low legacy challenges. I consider that to be a real challenge," he said.
 
MWE Consulting director Mike Ebstein, who was previously general manager of ANZ's cards division, said Australia's credit-card market was unattractive to new entrants but added Google could win major market share in the mid-term.
 
"Virgin demonstrated six years ago that the combination of a powerful brand and strong value proposition can work, so yes [Google] could do it," he said.

"Over time as Gen Y and Gen X mature and we increasingly move with technology, the power of the banks will be relatively diminished."

apple's banking ability

 
Consult Hyperion director David Birch has worked with Google and various payment schemes around the world.

He said Apple had the world's biggest credit-card database and could easily become a powerful player if it applied its abilities to banking.
 
"Apple has a very good record of coming up with easier and better ways of doing things," he said.

"People might complain about iTunes and how the music isn't theirs but they all use it because it's easy.
 
"If they can use Apple Passbook to bring that degree of simplicity and ease to messing around with all my store loyalty cards and messing around with my coupons or boarding passes, then I'll use it."

Credit Card Delinquency Soars

The number of delinquent credit card users has shot up over the past three years due to the economic slowdown. Data released by the Financial Supervisory Service on Sunday shows roughly 180,000 people defaulted on their credit card payments in 2011, up 29 percent from a year earlier.

The figure is even higher than in 2009, immediately after the global financial crisis.

From 2009 to 2011, the number of credit card defaulters reached nearly 500,000 and the amount of overdue debt stood at roughly US$2.3 billion.

Most of the defaulters are ranked in the medium to low range of creditworthiness, and the increase in their number reflects risks of worsening household debt. Korea is already grappling with growing household debt, which is expected to dent consumer spending and economic growth.

High-Priced Business Credit Cards Worth the Money

Business owners only want the best for their business, right down to the last detail. With dozens of business credit cards on the market, it can be hard to find the right match that will make the right impression when paying for a client lunch and at the same time provide rewards that can impact the company's bottom line.

Credit card companies offer an array of business cards, and just because a card has high annual fees, that doesn't mean it offers the best rewards and advantages than the no or low-annual fee counterparts.

A card like the American Express Centurion Card, also known as the Black Card, not only has an annual fee that runs thousands of dollars, it also has a minimum spending amount per year that is rumored to be $250,000. The card costs $5,000 to activate and charges a $2,500 annual fee and is offered by invitation only--no one quite knows how to snag an invitation, outside of being Donald Trump or Angelina Jolie.

To get an idea of what kinds of rewards a card with a high annual fee can offer, here's a look at some business credit cards that do carry a steep annual fee (though nothing like the AmEx Black Card!) and are available to anyone with a strong credit rating. Paying an annual fee can be the ticket to the elite credit card that your business deserves – just be sure to pick the right one.

The Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN

Annual Fee: $450

This business credit card is the closest you can come to carrying a Black Card from American Express, if that's important to you. With a high annual fee, it's still available only to people with extremely good credit, so don't even bother applying if your credit isn't stellar.

Why is this card worth that $450 annual fee? Well, when you spend $5,000 in the first three months, you'll get 25,000 bonus Membership Rewards points – usually earned at a rate of one point per dollar spent – and American Express Membership Rewards is one of the very best rewards programs out there. Not only can the points be used to pay for plane reservations, hotel rooms, merchandise and more (pro tip: air travel offers the biggest bang for your buck, when it comes to rewards), but rewards can be used to redeem travel through virtually any travel loyalty program you wish.

The card also gives access to VIP airport clubs and lounges, as well as free bag check and  in-flight refreshments. Holders also get $200 annually from Amex to refund any incidental travel fees, along with 24/7 concierge service from the American Express team, which is known for going above and beyond to assist cardholders with everything from making reservations to running errands. Just think of them as an on-call personal assistant.

There's no pre-set spending limit with this card, and you'll get access to exclusive AmEx events, from sporting events to concerts, that are sure to impress clients and potential partners.

Capital One Spark Miles for Business

Annual Fee: $59 (waived the first year)

This card gives double miles on purchases, a 15,000 bonus mile sign-on bonus (10,000 miles for spending $1,000 in three months and 5,000 more for adding an employee card), and lets you use the miles on any airline, anytime, with no blackout dates, restrictions, or expiration dates.

But the benefits also extend beyond travel rewards.

Capital One provides holders business management tools like spending summaries, expense reports, tax prep help, budgeting tools, and amazing, award-winning customer service. The Spark business cards are extremely popular and give good value for the money. At $59, the annual fee isn't high at all, and with the potential to earn free flights and get help tracking business spending, this card is well worth considering.

Miles can be used for gift cards, merchandise and cash back, but remember that travel is always the best redemption value.

 Citi Business AAdvantage World MasterCard

Annual Fee: $95

For the business owner who travels frequently and wants high-value rewards with lots of flexibility, this is great credit card that will pay off far more than its $95 annual fee. Bonus miles can be used on American Airlines, but as they are cutting some of their routes, remember that AAdvantage bonus miles can also be used to book travel on any of the twelve oneworld alliance partners, including airberlin, Japan Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and more.

Businesses applying for this card must have established credit history and a great credit score. Once approved, users will enjoy benefits like 30,000 bonus miles after making $1,000 in purchases during the first three months, free baggage check, priority boarding, double miles on eligible American Airlines purchases, and a 5% mileage bonus every year, depending on the eligible purchase amount.

Applied Bank Visa Business Card

Annual Fee: $119.40

The annual fee with this card is disguised; it looks lower because it's broken down to $9.95 a month which adds up to almost $120 a year. The Applied Bank Visa Business card offers no rewards, no concierge service, no expense reports or spending summaries and no travel perks.

It does offer a high APR of 23.99% on purchases, and the ability to be approved with less-than-great credit. In my opinion, this business credit card isn't worth the money, so don't make the mistake of thinking that a high annual fee always means elite status. It doesn't.

Elite Cards: What to Look For

Business owners can still impress clients and colleagues with a prestigious credit card. Just remember that if a business credit card carries a high annual fee, it should give something in return: travel benefits like priority boarding and free bag check, exclusive access to events and VIP lounges, concierge service, and high-value rewards.

Debit cards steal marketshare from credit cards, mobile payments on the move

There's huge potential for further growth in mobile payments over the next few years, with only 2.1 percent of mobile users currently making m-payments, in a global payments market where debit cards continue to take marketshare away from credit cards.

Research on the worldwide payments market just released by Capgemini, RBS, and Efma, reveals that the use of electronic and mobile payments continues to show exponential growth, and confirms the resilience of payment volumes, with global non-cash payments volumes growing by 7.1 per cent in 2010, reaching 283 billion, against early 2011 indications showing an additional 8.2% growth.

The World Payments Report 2012 from Capgemini, RBS and Efma also highlights two other major themes in the payments market – the relationship between regulation and innovation, with some regulation challenging innovation, and the fact that the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) concept is no longer valid in payments, with Brazil now the second-highest ranking country by payment volumes after the United States.

There were 20 billion non-cash transactions in Brazil in 2010, compared with 13.1 billion in Russia, India and China combined, according to the report, while in 2010, payment volumes in developing markets grew at a much faster rate – 16.9 percent - boosted by a more than 30 percent increase in both Russia and China.

{loadpositon peter}According to Kevin Brown, Global Head, Transaction Services Product, International Banking, RBS, as more consumers embrace electronic, mobile and debit card payments, the industry innovation will continue to focus heavily on these payment methods.

"There were an estimated 28.3 billion electronic and mobile payment transactions globally in 2011 and in 2010 more than one in three non-cash payments globally was made using a debit card, up 15.2%," Brown says.

"But with only 2.1% of all mobile users making m-payments, the potential for additional growth is still huge, with mobile payments set to reach 17 billion by 2013 and e-payments 31.4 billion by 2013."

Brown points out that debit card transactions continue to take market share from other types of payment methods "because they easily allow people to bypass the use of cash," and he adds, "as more and more consumers move to mobile and other electronic payments, we'll continue to see the exponential growth of innovative payment solutions."

The WPR also reveals how the relationship between regulation and innovation can challenge banks' capacity to undertake customer centric innovation.

According to Jean Lassignardie, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Capgemini Global Financial Services, partly as a result of the Eurozone debt crisis, European banks are complying faster than originally expected with the Basel III objectives, but as a result they have less capacity to focus on innovation. 

With the report concluding that regulation can have direct – or indirect – beneficial consequences for payments innovation, but not for all cases, Jean Lassignardie, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Capgemini Global Financial Services, says that "regulation must not be created in regional isolation, its central goal needs to drive innovation forward, and deliver customer benefits that push industry boundaries."

Asked what is driving innovation, more than two-thirds of respondents to the survey cited customer retention and acquisition as the two most critical areas for innovation, while in customer service the report highlights the fact that banks face tougher challenges than their non-bank counterparts, which in some cases have been able to focus on being customer-centric, without the same regulatory pressures.

Globally, the WPR reveals that the volume of non-cash payments remains concentrated in developed markets, with North America, Europe and "mature" Asia-Pacific together accounting for 79.5 percent.

Efma Secretary General, Patrick Desmarès, says, however, that the BRIC block is diverging, with Russia and China boosting payment volume increases of more than 30 percent, while Brazil has become the second-largest payment country in the world, after the US.

According to the report India's payment volume grew at 10 percent and has great potential for future growth, but is still the BRIC "payment laggard," with Desmarès commenting: "The BRIC acronym no longer works in payments. Given significant differences in the stages of development within each country, the four countries should be viewed very differently. This is particularly important for Brazil, where volumes are now larger than any individual European country."

Credit cards meet smartphones in new technology

With the spike in technological advancements, forgetting your coupons or debit cards is a thing of the past thanks to digital wallets. Technology giants Google and Apple are enabling you to pay with your smartphone by tapping or scanning the barcode on your device at your favorite merchant rendering your wallet unnecessary.

Google Wallet utilizes your smartphones abilities to store items digitally such as debit cards, credit cards, loyalty cards and gift cards. With the ability to store credit cards like Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover Card, your smartphone is able to pay for purchases at places like Subway, Jack in the Box, Macy's, and Jamba Juice.

There's always skepticism with a smartphone having all of your personal information but Google gives peace of mind by setting a secure pin number that, once entered correctly, gives the functionality to the user.

Shopping online with Google Wallet is a breeze as certain websites will give you the option to "Pay with Google Wallet," asking you to sign in with your information. Keep your eyes out for merchants who use payWave, as this will be your visual cue that your Android device is accepted.

Currently Google Wallet is supported by: Sprint, Virgin Mobile, as well as Android devices such as the Samsung Galaxy III, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, LG Viper, LG Optimus Elite and HTC EVO 4G.

Google plans to revolutionize the way we pay for things by partnering with more merchants so that paying with our device is the norm. If you prefer having coupons and boarding passes on your device instead then Apple will be the way to go.

Apple recently released its own version of a wallet, called Passbook, with its next generation of software iOS 6 for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.

Passbook enables you to store your loyalty cards, movie tickets, and store coupons from merchants like Fandango, Target, Starbucks, and your favorite airlines.

Passbook has time and location based abilities so that you don't need to go into the application and launch it– it'll recognize the venue via location. Even when your phone is locked it will load your boarding pass. No longer having to carry your ticket is convenient and saves it from being folded in many ways like origami.

When booking a flight, Passbook is smart enough to alert you if your gate changes so that you're not waiting at the wrong terminal.

Technology is here to stay and the smartphone era is only the beginning to what will be a wireless phenomenon. Science fiction meets reality and with Google and Apple making it easier then ever to use our phones they will have us fully immersed in a digital age where cash is no longer a form of tender.

 

Aussies 'are the wealthiest people in the world'

With all the doom and gloom surrounding the economy and the high cost of living, many people will find it hard to take suggestions that Aussies are the richest people on the planet seriously.

However, a new global report published by Credit Suisse showed that Australians have the highest median wealth, with each adult said to be worth just shy of $200,000.

Although the nation was said to have a combined credit card debt in the region of $36 billion at the last count, it seems that Aussies are faring far better than people in other countries.

The report indicated that Australia has the highest proportion of citizens with overall wealth of more than $100,000. In fact, the number of Aussies who have assets with a six-figure value was found to be eight-times higher than the global average.

"These are times of unprecedented economic change, and a radical reconfiguration of the world's economic order is taking shape," commented Francesco de Ferrari, Singapore-based head of private banking for Asia Pacific at Credit Suisse.

NFL Team Credit Card: A Good Deal?

The NFL Extra Points Credit Card, which has 32 customized team designs to choose from, is a good deal for football fans who want to show their affinity for a particular team - or for the game itself (you can choose a card design with just the NFL Shield on it). Popular team options include the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons and many more.

Using this this online application on Outlaw, you will also receive a "one-time bonus of 10,000 points after first use on the card, equal to $100 cash back statement credit."

The NFL Extra Points Credit Card has no annual fee and provides you with 0% Intro APR on balance transfers and purchases for the first 12 months after account opening. Additionally, enjoy "20% off every purchase at NFLShop.com - that's $20 off every $100 you spend" and earn 2 points for every $1 spent on NFL or team purchases (1 point for all other purchases on the card).

More details and actual customer reviews of this credit card can be viewed on Outlaw's deals portal here. I suspect this will become one of our most popular featured card deals in the weeks ahead, because it's an all-around solid deal with reasonable terms and a fairly generous 0% introductory APR period.

David blogs about personal finance and credit at Credit Card Outlaw. A version of this article originally appeared on Outlaw's travel deals vertical.

Disclosures: Outlaw is a credit card promotions site, and as such we maintain financial relationships with numerous banks and financial institutions, including the offers and cards mentioned or featured herein. Information is believed to be accurate at time of publication, but no warranties or guarantees are provided. Visit the issuer's web site for updated terms, rates, and conditions.