NEWSIn light of recent press coverage linking Cardtronics Inc. to the Citibank ATM-server breach disclosed in June 2008, the company issued a statement, claiming its ATMs located in 7-Eleven Inc. stores are fully compliant with Triple Data Encryption and the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS).
"All ATMs owned or operated by Cardtronics have encrypted PIN pads, as well as Triple DES encryption, as required by the various electronic fund transfer networks," Cardtronics stated. "Additionally, Cardtronics' processing platform complies with the PIN security requirements established by the Payment Card Industry and has successfully completed a PCI PIN-security field review performed by one of the major networks."
Starting in October 2007, hackers allegedly worked their way into a server that processes Citibank-branded ATMs in various 7-Eleven stores, and stole $2 million from cardholder accounts. Cardtronics operates all ATMs located in U.S. 7-Eleven stores.
Ten people have been arrested and are under criminal prosecution in the United States District Court in New York, New York. Cardtronics said it won't participate in the proceedings.
The company issues a statement that read, "Cardtronics is not involved in this criminal prosecution and therefore does not anticipate that it will issue any statements with respect to this case or the alleged conduct of the defendants in the case."
Marc Gardner is the man, or in this case, the entrepreneur. On June 12, 2008, Ernst & Young LLP presented North American Bancard's President and Chief Executive Officer its Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 award for the Detroit region. One of Gardner's business associates nominated him for the prestigious competition. Soon after, Gardner received mail notification of his status as a potential recipient. "I was extremely honored," he said.
Nominees were required to submit an application, detailing why they should be chosen to receive the honor. In the final round, nominees presented themselves to a panel of judges for an oral review.
The regional winners were announced at black-tie galas in 26 cities across the United States. Gardner attended the recognition ceremony at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Dearborn, Mich., with his wife and executive team. Ernst & Young pulled out all the stops for this occasion, according to Gardner. "My wife referred to it as the Midwestern Academy Awards," he said. All regional winners will vie for the national Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 award and will be further acknowledged this autumn at a black-tie gala hosted by Jay Leno in Palm Springs, Calif.
ANNOUNCEMENTSChargeSmart LLC, a provider of online payment solutions to the financial services and mortgage industries, launched its comprehensive Web-based payment service allowing consumers to pay their mortgages, auto and education loans, and utility bills using major credit card brands.
ChargeSmart has more than 4,000 billers across the United States, and completes transactions using a secure Internet-based payment system.
CIO magazine recognized Discover Financial Services as one of the top 100 organizations exemplifying operational and strategic excellence in information technology. CIO 100 awards are presented annually to acknowledge companies that use innovation resulting in measurable business impact. Discover also made the list in 2006 and 2007.
Comodo Group, a provider of extended validation secure sockets layer certificates for Web site security, released Trustix Enterprise Firewall version 4.8.1, an enterprise class, open source, Linux-based, free firewall solution. The firewall monitors and protects networks against unauthenticated traffic or login attempts, which could inject malware suc as Trojans, worms or infected files into computer systems.
The updated firewall contains failsafe features in case of primary server failures.
It also has a virtual private network connection and an intrusion detection system (IDS) that makes it easier for clients to remotely configure IDS settings and determine the source of intrusions.
Electronic Payments Inc. received PCI DSS certification from its PCI DSS qualified security assessor (QSA).
"I think for any ISO or processor to be a leader in the industry, you must achieve PCI certification," said Michael Nardy, founder and Chief Executive Officer of EPI. "In an environment of card data breaches and the potential of staggering fines for noncompliance, our decision to follow the PCI DSS ... is just another part of our commitment to our merchants and sales partners."
The PCI Data Security Standards Council added MIS Corporate Defence Solutions Ltd. to the list of PCI DSS QSAs. The company stated it is the first senior vendor to partner with firms like Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., Juniper Networks Inc., Nokia and RSA Security to attain PCI QSA status in the UK.
Payvision, an international payment solutions provider for the card not present marketplace, opened a satellite office in Singapore to service its growing Asian clientele and compliment its existing North American and European operations.
The facility will mix sales with 24/7 customer service. Payvision has plans to increase the Singapore office staff to assist its projected expansion for more regional offices, with Singapore serving as its base of Asian operations.
The Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Tele-communication awarded Volante Technologies Inc. the SwiftReady Gold Messaging Library certification.
Volante's SwiftReady-compatible product modules are used by major financial service organizations for a wide variety of mission-critical applications, including payment processing, corporate actions, market data, best execution and trade processing.
The certification is a new category that SwiftReady created in 2006 based on the requirements of decoupling financial institution number messages from middle-ware in service-oriented architectures and Web services environments.
PARTNERSHIPSAladdin Knowledge Systems, an information security company specializing in authentication, digital rights management and content security, entered into a collaboration with IdenTrust, makers of the only bank-developed identity authentication system, for secure online banking and financial transactions. The companies will implement next-generation technology for financial institutions in the United States, Europe and Asia to improve the security of e-commerce, fight identity theft, increase customer confidence and drive revenue.
Amazon.com Inc. customers recently gained the option of using Bill Me Later Inc.'s next-generation payments service to pay for purchases online without using credit cards. In December 2007, Amazon invested in Bill Me Later and disclosed its intent to offer the company's service.
Electronic Payment Exchange, a provider of fully integrated, end-to-end payment processing solutions, signed a multiyear agreement with Flint Telecom Inc. Under the terms of the agreement, EPX will be the exclusive processor for Flint Telecom's credit and debit card payments using EPX's new BuyerWall platform.
Etelcharge.com signed a letter of intent with Comdata Stored Value Solutions Inc. to create a gift card for premium merchants, which will be offered at www.etelcharge.com. The letter is expected to lead to "the preparation and execution of a mutually agreeable, definitive agreement," Etelcharge noted.
"This is a significant next step for us to provide the most complete downloadable content options from the very best merchants, including companies like Blockbuster, eBay and a great many others, for our members through the SVS catalog of gift cards," said Rob Howe, Chairman and CEO of Etelcharge.
Global Electronic Technology Inc. teamed with mobile commerce billing services provider Mobillcash to give GET's merchants the ability to increase sales revenue from mobile phone customers.
Irvine, Calif.-based Group ISO, a provider of complete merchant solutions for businesses and income opportunities for resellers, formed an alliance with Ezic Inc., a digital payment solutions provider.
"This solution will allow ISOs and agents who are involved in the hospitality industry to meet their needs quickly and securely," said Ted Svoronos, Certified E-Commerce Consultant for Group ISO. "This alliance gives users the ability to apply the solution end to end; we are bringing the best of both worlds."
IRN Payment Systems selected Ingenico Inc.'s Aqua credit and debit card terminal for use in IRN's free merchant equipment program. Under the agreement, TASQ Technology Inc. has the exclusive rights to distribute the Aqua terminal; IRN's requirements will also be fulfilled through the agreement. The Aqua is compliant with the PCI PIN Entry Device program and comes with a bilingual payment application to accommodate both English and Spanish.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. renewed its contract with the State of Alaska for the distribution of benefit payments to the more than 23,000 households currently receiving funds for food and other living expenses. Utilizing JPMC's electronic services, the state will continue to supply families with debit cards to access their funds.
JPMC has supported the Alaska Quest Card for more than a decade, enabling the state to disburse food stamps and temporary assistance to families in need.
Alaska also has used the JPMC Direct Payment Card since 2004 to deliver child support benefits.
Open Solutions Inc. and Superior Press are working together to provide Open Solutions' Imaged Payment Technologies Group (IPTG) clients with a hardware deployment solution for distributed check capture.
The deployment solution allows IPTG clients to purchase scanners from Open Solutions and ware-house these same units at Superior Press for future deployment. The total solution includes inventory and fulfillment management, hardware testing, packaging welcome kit materials, reporting, shipping notifications, online service requests and 24/7 order tracking to support the client help desk.
Rosetta Stone Inc., a provider of language-learning software, chose GlobalCollect as its technology solution partner for e-commerce transactions.
Satyam Computer Services Ltd., a global consulting and information technology services provider, entered into an alliance with Tyfone Inc., a provider of mobile financial services, infrastructure and fully integrated mobile payments capabilities worldwide.
The companies will collaborate to supply businesses with a competitive edge in the mobile financial services sector.
Staples Inc. selected Parago Inc. to transition Staples' Easy Rebates reward system from paper checks to network-branded prepaid cards for most rebates. The decision came after a successful test launch in January 2008.
According to a recent survey conducted by Parago, over 70 percent of consumers had a positive experience when using network-branded prepaid card rewards and were most impressed with the ability to spend their rewards immediately.
The five-year contract between Visa Europe and international telecom firm will allow the card network to move to an Internet Protocol (IP)-based network, bolstering the capabilities of its 4,600 member banks in 36 countries through increased support, improved business continuity and enhanced network security. "Visa Europe's transaction network is on the front line of its service offering, and BT provides focused and scalable support for this mission crit cal infrastructure," said Francois Barrault, CEO of BT Global Services.
ACQUISITIONSBlueStar, distributor of auto identification, POS, radio frequency identification and mobility products, acquired the assets of PSD-PrintScan Distributions GmbH, a German-based distributor of automatic identification products in Europe.
Electronic payment solutions provider Solveras Payment Systems acquired the assets of Electronic Check Alliance Processing Inc. (eCAP), a St. Paul, Minn.-based full-service payments provider specializing in check recovery products. ECAP will continue as a Solveras sales channel.
John Cramp, President of Franklin, Tenn.-based Solveras said his company is gaining "a strategic portfolio with cross-sale opportunities and a new Midwest sales and distribution channel, all underpinned by a great team."
APPOINTMENTSJuniper Networks Inc. named Luis Avila-Marco Senior Vice President of Corporate Development. He will lead corporate strategic planning, as well as develop key strategic relationships for the company. The company also appointed John Morris to Executive Vice President of Worldwide Field Operations. He will head Juniper's global sales, service and channel organizations.
ControlScan appointed Mark Johnson as Chairman of its board. A 25-year financial services veteran, he previously held the Vice Chairman position at CheckFree.
Comdata Corp. named Todd Joseph Senior Vice President of Information Technology. He previously served as Comdata's Vice President of Infrastructure Services and IT Mergers and Acquisitions.
BlueStar recently tapped Anastasia Semeraro to be Marketing Manager for its Latin America division. She will lead BlueStar's expansion into the Latin American market.
Trustwave appointed Isabel Silva to Manager of Business Development of Trustwave do Brasil. She will be responsible for Trustwave's business development activity in Brazil, including new business opportunities, as well as channel and alliance partnerships.
MasterCard Worldwide appointed Stephanie Voquer as its Chief Human Resources Officer. Voquer will now serve on MasterCard's management council and will be responsible for all global human resources functions.
Most recently, she was Group Head of Human Resources for MasterCard Europe, where she oversaw talent management and acquisition throughout Europe.
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