Spring will soon be upon us and that means the card networks are preparing to introduce new interchange rates. It happens every year, but this time around the changes are generating a significant amount of press coverage. "Visa is planning the biggest changes to swipe fees in a decade," proclaimed a headline in Bloomberg News. The news drew a sharp rebuke from retailers, with the Retail Industry Leaders Association protesting that the planned changes are evidence of a "broken" market in need of government intervention. Austen Jensen, RILA senior vice president for government affairs, said, "In a free market with competition, that would drive costs down, not up. There is only one reason Visa is preparing to hike fees on merchants – they can."
While 5G has yet to be officially launched, global adoption rates are five times greater than predicted, according to a white paper by Juniper Research. 5G – The Five Year Roadmap, published Feb. 18, 2019, attributes prelaunch demand to pricing strategies by mobile network operators and device support by smartphone manufacturers and wireless access providers. "The rate of adoption has already been five times faster than anticipated in our previous report, which holds great promise for 5G," Juniper researchers wrote. "It has not just lodged in the public consciousness but has found its way into the lives of several million consumers."
Masks used for fraudulent facial identification may soon become as passé as dummies in high-occupancy vehicle lanes, thanks to biometric technology developed by trinamiX GmbH, a BASF SE subsidiary and member of the Qualcomm Software Accelerator Program. The company's patented Beam Profile Analysis technology uses a combination of imaging, depth mapping and material detection to identify live skin patterns within a single camera. The solution differentiates between real faces and disguises used by fraudsters to gain unauthorized access to mobile apps, according to company representatives. The proprietary solution will be distributed with Qualcomm Technologies, stated Ingmar Bruder, managing director and founder of trinamiX.
The PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) released new guidance on Feb. 20, 2020, aimed at addressing the unique needs of enterprise-scale organizations. Information Supplement: PCI DSS for Large Organizations was produced by the 2019 Special Interest Group (SIG). Drawing from direct experience at large companies, SIG members provided recommendations for managing PCI DSS assessments across multiple business units and third-party service providers. Mauro Lance, PCI SSC senior vice president and operating officer, noted that SIGs play a key role at the council and represent a cross-section of experts from the front lines of payment security. Their knowledge helps industry stakeholders apply PCI standards to their organizations, he stated. 
Following are excerpts from news stories recently posted under Breaking Industry News on our home page. For links to these and other full news stories, please visit www.greensheet.com/breakingnews.php?flag=previous_breaking_news. Retailers protest planned interchange changes
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