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23 Apr 2010 13:25

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Tech: Blippy’s credit card breach has Twitter in disbelief



Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

23 Apr 2010 13:16

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Tech: Blippy’s got some oversharing problems on its hands

  • yesterday The New York Times publishes an article on Blippy in regards to the privacy concerns it raises – it shares once-confidential info on your purchases with your friends.
  • today A VentureBeat reporter found the reason this might be an awful idea. They found a Google search that exposes users’ credit card numbers. (!) Oh boy. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Jan 2010 16:40

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Biz: Happy New Year! Banks are figuring out new ways to screw you

  • $50B the amount of income banks stand to lose due to the Credit Card Act of 2009
  • 43% of bank execs feel that consumer trust has eroded in the last six months; no, really
  • fees the solution banks plan to offset losses – let the nickel & diming commence source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Dec 2009 21:17

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U.S.: Albert Gonzalez: Meet the guy who stole lots of credit card numbers

  • See this guy over here? You hate him. This guy is named Albert Gonzalez, and he’s responsible for stealing 130 million credit card numbers, along with two Russian hackers who probably look like video game characters. If you’ve ever shopped at 7-Eleven, there’s a good chance your card was stolen by this guy. He pleaded guilty today. So remember. Hate him. You. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Dec 2009 21:52

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Tech: Fair and Square: Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey simplifies buying stuff

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  • OK, this is pretty cool. Jack Dorsey, one of the guys behind Twitter, has another startup which promises to revolutionize the process of credit/debit transactions. It’s a tiny square. It requires an audio jack. That’s it. Like Twitter, it’s dead simple. Unlike Twitter, it’s not a super-esoteric concept at the outset, begging people to figure out why it’s necessary. It just makes sense. Kudos. Could someone give us a reason to use this? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Aug 2009 09:59

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Biz, Tech: How did the credit-card hackers do it? It was easy, actually.

  • A little malware here, a proxy server there … Albert Gonzalez and his Russian conspirators weren’t screwing around when they hacked the Gibson of a number of corporations, most notably 7-Eleven, and stole millions of credit card numbers. By targeting potential victims, learning the companies’ point of sale systems, and launching SQL-injection attacks to install malware, they were able to steal 130 million credit card numbers. They exploited bad security using crude methods for positive gain. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Aug 2009 22:13

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Biz, Tech: Albert Gonzalez probably has your credit card number

  • 130 million numbers were stolen by him and two Russians source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

07 Jul 2009 12:21

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Biz: Another sign the economy sucks: People can’t pay off credit

  • 6.6% of all card debt is delinquent; that’s a record source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 May 2009 10:41

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Biz: Credit cards will try to cash in on their good customers

  • $20 billion amount credit companies are supposed to make from fees – overlimit charges and such – on bad customers this year source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 May 2009 10:25

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Biz, Politics: A quickie defense of credit card companies facing regulation

  • After everything is taken into account, a rigorous, highly tested credit recommendation pops out of their risk management engine. They literally have math and statistics PhDs who are in charge of this stuff. Congress seeks to prevent such complex analysis.
  • The Atlantic columnist Daniel Indiviglio • On the reasons credit card companies policies often lean towards predatory practices, and why Congress’ plan to kill those practices is no good. Indiviglio says that the unintended consequence of the the legislation currently going through Congress is that it will leave fewer people with credit. May we make the argument that this might actually be a good thing? • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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