Unregulated Gift Card Business Expiring - Issue 14 - November 2006

Unregulated Gift Card Business Expiring

Toronto, September 24 2006- The McGuinty government is moving to ban expiry dates on consumer gift cards, Minister of Government Services Gerry Phillips said today at the Toronto Eaton Centre.

“Retail gift cards have become widely popular and the consumers of this province deserve to get what they pay for,” said Phillips. “That's why our government is acting by introducing legislation that, if passed, will allow us to regulate the elimination of expiry dates, and the terms and conditions for these cards, ensuring they retain their full value no matter when consumers redeem them.”

Gift cards and other stored value cards are a multi-billion dollar industry and one of the fastest growing products in the marketplace today. Virtually all major retailers now offer some form of gift card, with most containing an expiry date of about two years. Some retailers also apply fees to the cards, reducing their value after a certain length of time.

“We are delighted to see that Ontario intends to eliminate expiry dates on gift cards. More and more consumers are purchasing gift cards and we are pleased that Ontario is proactively leading the way to protect consumers,” said Consumers Council of Canada President Bill Huzar.

New regulations will be developed to ensure that gift cards purchased by consumers in Ontario would not expire. The regulations would also put strict limits on any related fees and ensure that all terms and conditions are disclosed at the time of purchase.

“We look forward to working with the government to create rules that respond to the concerns of consumers but also take into consideration the legitimate needs of retailers. I am sure a balance can be found,” said Diane J. Brisebois, President and CEO, Retail Council of Canada.

The proposed changes would apply to gift cards and certificates, but not to loyalty cards, discount coupons or promotional/charitable gift cards.

“We hope this legislation will pass quickly so that we can begin working with the retail industry to develop and implement the new regulations as soon as possible,” said Phillips.

Ensuring retail gift cards and certificates retain their full value is one way the McGuinty government is protecting Ontario consumers. Other recent measures include:

– Proposed legislation for this fall that, if passed, will enhance existing protection for Ontario families from real estate fraud

– New regulations that ban threatening language and limit the number of phone calls collection agencies can make

– Creation of the Consumer Beware List, an online database listing businesses with unresolved complaints and convictions.

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Regulation of gift cards is curiously absent in Canada. Ironically, in a country with a high concentration of financial institutions that are closely regulated, the gift card industry has driven millions of dollars into largely unregulated merchant bank accounts. Canada lags far behind the US in the regulation of gift cards where 26 states have already adopted gift card regulations 8 of which include a ban on expiry dates. The cover story of this issue looks at an Ontario initiative in regulation of gift cards.

PCI compliance is also a recurring theme in this issue. Many merchants and some processors are not PCI compliant, some don’t even know what it is. Perhaps the best source of information on PCI compliance is the following site: www.pcisecuritystandards.org, being the organization that sets the PCI standards.

The FT receives a number of enquiries from US payments companies that are beginning their expansion into Canada. If readers are interested to assist those companies, please feel free to contact us so that we can make an introduction.

We wish all readers a great Canadian fall season.

Adam N. Atlas

Editor in Chief

atlas@frontiertimes.ca

NEWS

TrustCommerce and MagTek® Help with PCI Compliance

California, 5 October 2006 -- TrustCommerce and MagTek have collaborated to deliver a truly encrypted end to end Point of Sale payment environment utilizing TC POS Vault from TrustCommerce and MagTek’s MagnePrint®-enabled Encrypting Magnetic Stripe Reader. This secure environment provides complete protection of sensitive card data from the moment the card is swiped through the reader.

The data encryption process prevents card holder information from being compromised at any point throughout the transaction, reducing merchant’s management, network, and infrastructure expenses, while offering unequaled integrated security and peace of mind.

Optimal: Game Over

Montreal, 10 October 2006 – On October 2nd, 2006, Optimal Group Inc., made an announcement regarding the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 by the United States Congress and its impact on FireOne Group plc. Optimal Group holds approximately 76% of the issued and outstanding shares of FireOne Group.

FireOne Group announced that following the approval of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, it will immediately cease to process settlement for transactions originating from U. S consumers that may be viewed as related to online gambling. FireOne Group also announced that as a consequence of the anticipated significant negative impact on its business and results of operations, it has embarked upon a restructuring of its operations and cost base. It is expected that the President of the United States of America will sign the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 into law in the immediate future.

FireOne Group further stated that it will continue to offer its multi-currency credit and debit card and FirePay electronic wallet processing to the online gambling industry originating from non-U. S. consumers and not prohibited by the Act, and will consider cardnot-present payment processing opportunities outside of online gambling.

Debit-card use is on the rise

North America, 20 October 2006 – One-third of all consumer purchases in the North America are now made through debit cards, a 50 percent increase in only seven years. The use of debit cards for purchases gives the consumer the ability to save money, get cash and eliminate credit-card debt.

UseMyBank Services Joins NACHA Internet Council

Ontario, 20 September 2006 – UseMyBank Services, Inc. has joined the NACHA Internet Council. The mission of the Internet Council is to smooth the progress of electronic commerce over open networks by enabling business, government and consumers to transact in a secure and cost-effective manner.

“Based on UseMyBank's success in the area of online direct debit, we believe that our membership in NACHA's Internet Council will help make a positive impact on the ACH network by working together to promote efficiency, reliability, and security,” said Brian Crozier, VP of Business Development, UseMyBank.

“The past four years in Canada have demonstrated that we are fully aware of all the major issues surrounding online debit. Everything from risk aversion management, customer support, trends, and other valuable information is readily available to us. We would hope that this would prove invaluable to an organization such as NACHA,” said Joseph Iuso, CEO, UseMyBank.

POSLynx220™ Approved by Merchant Link for Hospitality

Systems Solution

Ottawa, 22 September 2006 – Precidia Technologies Inc., a global leader in the design and manufacture of Internet Protocol (IP) access devices, announces verification of its POSLynx220™

with NetVu™ payment router by Merchant Link, a leading solutions provider to the integrated point-of-sale (POS) industry. The POSLynx220 multi-port payment router connects serial and dial based equipment such as PC or electronic cash registers and ATMs to DSL, cable or wireless IP networks. Designed to meet the needs of the retail payments industry, it features SSL, dial back up and routing to multiple destinations based on card type.

Following extensive testing, the POSLynx220 has been verified by Merchant Link to transmit high-speed transactions via the Merchant Link siteNET® M2 Internet Gateway, to the processing host. The POSLynx220 converts the dial message to an IP format for transmission over the Merchant Link network. The testing verified transactions transmitted via a PC-based integrated point-ofsale system and confirmed that transaction time was significantly improved. Hospitality management systems from several major vendors are widely-used for electronic payments in the restaurant industry, but many are not currently configured to send transactions over a high speed broadband network.

Precidia president Deepak Wanner says this option not only helps merchants extend the functional life of their equipment, but also delivers value added services: “With NetVu, users in the high volume restaurant and hospitality sectors gain access to tools such as online support and detailed event logging. While POSLynx speeds transactions, NetVu is working to deliver critical operational data. Together they deliver a powerful value-add to users of hospitality management systems”, said Mr. Wanner.

Over 500 Businesses Sign Up For ZATA in B.C.

Vancouver, 13 October 2006 – ZATA, is a market sales intelligence and benchmarking tool for BC’s retail and restaurant industries. Over 500 BC retail outlets and restaurants have already signed up for the new service and more businesses are signing up every week. The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association (BCRFA) and Retail BC have developed ZATA’s online data network in partnership with BC-based technology firm Vivonet.

Here’s how it works. Participating businesses simply enter their sales data for the week in order to get an accurate market ranking known as a ZATA score, an easy to understand number that lets them know exactly how they compare with other similar participating businesses within their market area.

“ZATA will forever change the way BC-owned and managed retailers do business,” said Mark Startup, president and CEO of Retail BC. “Independent retailers can now operate with the same market-tracking information as their big-box competitors.”

ZATA is offered free of charge to members of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association (BCRFA) and Retail BC. The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association ZATA is available now and the Retail BC ZATA will be available later this summer.

For more information on ZATA, visit: www.myzata.com

Canada’s economic growth slows to 2%

Canada, 5 September 2006 – Economic growth slowed to an annualized rate of 2.0 per cent in the second quarter as exports fell, said Statistics Canada. The U.S. economy also slowed in the second quarter. Its annualized growth fell from 5.6 per cent in Q1 to 2.9 per cent in the April-to-June quarter.

That’s a sharp drop from the 3.6 per cent increase in GDP recorded in the first quarter. Economists had expected Q2 growth to slow to about 2.3 per cent. “This slower growth reflected reduced but sustained growth in consumer spending and business investment in plant and equipment as well as a cooling in the housing market,” Statistics Canada said.

“Both the headline and the details in this report are on the soft side of expectations, and should fully cement the view that the Bank of Canada will bide its time on the policy front over the rest of 2006,” said BMO Capital Markets economist Douglas Porter.

NAFCU Services Corp. Strengthens Relationship With Affinion Group

Toronto, 30 August 2006 – NAFCU Services Corporation, a subsidiary of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, announced that it is strengthening its Preferred Partner relationship with Affinion Group, a leading global affinity marketer, by endorsing its innovative PrivacyGuard ID theft protection service.

NAFCU Services also endorses Affinion Group's value-added checking services and Accidental Death & Dismemberment insurance programs. PrivacyGuard, which was launched by Affinion Group in 1992, is a pre-eminent national identity theft protection product that offers daily credit monitoring, identity fraud resolution support and identity theft insurance.

“As identity theft escalates and more people become victims of this fraud, there’s an even greater need in the marketplace for a robust identity theft product that can offer security and peace of mind,” said Frank Abagnale, a former master forger and leading fraud prevention expert, whose life story became a blockbuster movie called Catch Me If You Can. “PrivacyGuard has a long and successful track record that offers security and other enhanced benefits to keep up with today's fast-paced lifestyle.”

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in North America, with 27.3 million victims in the past five years, and nearly 20 million in the past two years alone, according to a study from Javelin Strategy & Research. This crime costs more than $56 billion, or $6,383 per victim, annually, according to the study. The crime has become so prevalent, that an identity thief strikes on average every 3.5 seconds.

The PrivacyGuard service offers:

• Daily Credit Monitoring from one of the three national reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax or TransUnion) which will make members aware of any credit file inquiries, certain derogatory items and new account information.

• Credit Reports – Members can receive their credit scores and have access to analysis tools that include data from one or all three of the national credit reporting agencies.

• Identity Fraud Resolution Service & Insurance – Victims who call the toll-free hotline will be assigned a caseworker that will assist with issuing a fraud alert with three national credit-reporting agencies.

In addition, the victim will receive a personalized fraud resolution kit that includes: educational information; contacts of government agencies and financial institutions; personalized letters to send to the credit reporting agencies and financial institutions; tips on how to file a police report; and a worksheet for victims to track activities and time spent resolving their issue. The resolution service will also provide assistance with obtaining the appropriate legal solutions. If the member's identity is stolen, the member also receives up to $10,000 in ID theft insurance, with no deductible, to cover eligible out of pocket expenses.

TNS Smart Network Joins BlackBerry™ ISV Alliance

Toronto, 10 October 2006 – TNS Smart Network Inc., Canada's largest privately owned processor, announced that to further enhance the "virtual office" of its customers they have signed an agreement with Research in Motion Limited to join the BlackBerry™ ISV Alliance.

Managing billions of dollars, $20 at a time, requires instantaneous,

reliable communication tools. That is why Canadian and U.S. business customers of TNS Group of Companies rely on wireless tools to access real time status, alerts and reports on more

than 22,000 ATMs globally under TNS Group of Companies.

Nowadays, Financial Institutions, Independent Sales Organizations and retailers enjoy instant secure wireless Web access and Email alerts to ATM cash levels, threshold reports and status monitoring; all necessities ensuring consumers get access to their cash when and where they need it.

With “smart” enhancements such as WebMon™, AlertPlus™ and BlackBerry™ devices, TNS business customers keep their supply chain resources up-to-date resulting in lower declined transactions and more revenue.

Paper can be messy and lead to increased errors in customer information, which means increased cost of doing business; but with enhanced wireless tools and “smart” applications such as WebMon™ business customers can deal with change requests and new installs, communicate with technicians, vault cash suppliers and support personnel according to time, day of week, role and other user defined settings.

Whether the ATM is located in Sacramento, California or Gaspe, Quebec, customers can manage their ATMs live at their convenience, given that this alliance will enable TNS to develop enhanced wireless functionality.

Gemalto Wins Best Vendor Partner Award from MasterCard

Montreal, 1 September 2006 – Gemalto announced that it has won a "Best Vendor Partner Award" for its MasterCard® OneSmart™ PayPass™ EMV Contactless Combi Cards at the MasterCard Asia/Pacific, Middle East & Africa Product Forum in August 2006. Gemalto is delivering the cards to two of Taiwan's leading banks.

"MasterCard presented this Best Vendor Partner Award to Gemalto in recognition of their efforts in taking a lead in designing and producing MasterCard® OneSmart™ PayPass™ EMV Contactless Combi Card to financial institutions in Taiwan. The convenient, flexible and secure MasterCard® OneSmart™ PayPass™ EMV Contactless Combi Card produced by Gemalto will enable banks to extend a wide range of valuable services to their customers." Commented by MasterCard.

The cards are compliant with Taipei Smart Card Corporation's applications (stored value card, and Epurse for transportation applications) and will simplify and quicken small-sum payments for Taiwan's MRT, bus, parking lots and other locations, allowing cardholders to benefit from high-tech, secure and convenient transactions.

ICC Solutions Announces Availability of New Products

Toronto, 12 September 2006 – ICC Solutions is pleased to share news with the industry of new, valuable components within the internationally recognised ICCSim Portfolio.

ICCSim for card and device testing, now fully supports the new test scripts released to address Visa Contactless 2.0.1 Specification requirements, incorporating VSDC and MSD. Visa has confirmed that ICCSim supports the test scripts for Contactless 2.0.1.

ICCSim now also supports the new release of ADVT 4.0 test scripts. Visa confirmed ICCSim for correct emulation of the smart cards within the Visa Acquirer Device Validation Toolkit (ADVT) and is capable of supporting the requirements of the Toolkit.

The ICC Solutions Team is enjoying increased activity in Canada and has plans to host "drop-in" sessions at their new office in Toronto.

VeriFone Banks on a Looming Upgrade Market in the U.S. And Canada

Ontario, 15 September 2006 – VeriFone’s aggressive focus on North America has not changed even with the upcoming acquisition of Israel-based rival Lipan Electronic Engineering Ltd.

VeriFone reported that operating income, which excludes certain amortization and stock- and debt-related expenses, rose 49% to $33.4 million for its third fiscal quarter. Net income was $16.8 million, an increase of 156% from $6.5 million a year earlier. Revenues grew 17% to $147.6 million from $125.7 million in the 2005 period.

Verifone’s Chairman and chief executive Douglas G. Bergeron says that he foresees no problems in closing the Lipman deal by Nov. 1, even though it still needs U.S. Department of Justice antitrust clearance and approval of both companies’ shareholders. Bergeron expects word from the Department of Justice any time, and shareholder meetings were scheduled for mid-September.

The nearly $800 million deal will bring to VeriFone, Lipman’s strong wireless-terminal business and sizable presence in such markets as China, India, the United Kingdom, and Spain. According to Bergeron, Lipman is No. 1 or No. 2 in all of its markets outside the U.S. With Lipman about to expand VeriFone’s influence overseas, Bergeron still sees plenty of opportunities in the U.S. and Canada.

VeriFone started a major drive in Canada only in 2004, And in the third quarter alone for the 2006’s fiscal year, sales were of $5.4 million. “We are enjoying phenomenal success in a growing market,” Bergeron said. In large part because of Canada’s planned shift to chip-based payment cards beginning next year, Bergeron said opportunities exist to upgrade 570,000 systems.

Chase Paymentech Launches PCI Compliance Initiative for Level 4 Merchants

Toronto, 31 August 2006 – Chase Paymentech Solutions, LLC, a leading acquirer in the bankcard industry, has launched a data security compliance program focused on helping small or medium sized merchants achieve Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard compliance. According to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), merchants who process less than 20,000 e-commerce and/or one million card present transactions of a single card brand annually are classified as Level 4 merchants. Merchant compliance requirements are segmented into four levels based on the number of transactions a merchant processes annually and the channel employed to accept those transactions. Compliance with PCI DSS is mandatory for all merchants.

Chase Paymentech will utilize AmbironTrustWave's Risk Profiler™ to help measure the degree of risk among a sampling of more than 18,000 of its Level 4 merchants. AmbironTrustWave's Risk Profiler is a web-based dynamic questionnaire that prompts merchants to answer questions about their acceptance channel, transaction volume and other parameters important in identifying risk. Once a merchant completes the questionnaire, a risk score is provided with recommended actions for the merchant to implement toward achieving PCI DSS compliance. The AmbironTrustWave Risk Profiler tool is supported by a robust, end-to-end communication platform that encourages merchants to take an active role in protecting cardholder information and their businesses.

AmbironTrustWave developed the Risk Profiler specifically to help acquirers manage PCI DSS compliance among their Level 4 merchants. While Level 4 merchants typically process the fewest number of credit card transactions, the risk to their customers' cardholder data is significant due to a lack of internal data security resources as well as a reliance on third-party technology, such as point-of-sale (POS) systems.

Royal Bank of Canada Completes Acquisition of American Guaranty & Trust

Toronto, 3 October 2006 – Royal Bank of Canada and the National Life Group announced completion of the sale of American Guaranty & Trust (AG&T), a member of the National Life Group, to Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Based in Wilmington, Delaware, AG&T will continue to service more than $1.3 billion in trust and investment accounts from existing clients, while also extending service to RBC clients through Global Private Banking and to RBC Dain Rauscher's high net worth wealth management clients across the U.S.

RBC is committed to expanding in global high growth businesses that complement its wealth management platform. The combined business will create growth and value for Royal Bank of Canada shareholders by enabling RBC Global Private Banking to provide U.S. trust solutions, complementing a wellestablished international trust capability.

In addition to Global Private Banking offices in New York, Miami, San Francisco and Houston, RBC's U.S. operations include RBC Centura, a regional bank in the U.S. Southeast; RBC Dain Rauscher, a full-service securities firm; RBC Insurance, a national provider of insurance protection and asset accumulation solutions; RBC Capital Markets, with corporate and investment banking operations in New York, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Houston and other select U.S. locations; and RBC Builder Finance, a Houstonbased provider of construction loans with national reach.

Chase Paymentech Solutions, Canada Appoints New President

Toronto, September 26 2006 – Chase Paymentech Solutions LLC, the world’s leading provider of electronic payment processing, has appointed Sam Jawad as President, of Chase Paymentech, Canada.

Most recently, Mr. Jawad, served as CEO of First Data Loan Company where he led several strategic initiatives and built key alliances in the merchant acquiring business. Mr. Jawad previously held several senior strategy and business development roles at Bank One International and Citi Cards, Canada where he oversaw critical initiatives related to card issuing, acquisitions and partnerships.

In making the announcement, Dan Charron, Executive Vice President, Chase Paymentech Solutions, said “Sam Jawad will play a key role in taking Chase Paymentech, Canada to the next level of market leadership. We have focused recent efforts in consolidating our operations and implementing new technologies to drive the business forward. Mr. Jawad brings the financial and business experience to Chase Paymentech, Canada that is required at this point of our expansion and growth.”

Mr. Jawad says, “I am very excited about the opportunities at Chase Paymentech and to be working with such a talented group of people. Chase Paymentech is already the World’s premier provider of Payment Processing services and I look forward to working with all our employees to make the company the leader in the Canadian market. In order to accomplish this and to add greater value to our customers, we will work hard to provide unparalleled service, quality and the latest payment technologies. This will be accomplished through a strong focus on hiring and retaining talented employees who possess enthusiasm, integrity, loyalty and who share our passion for the industry.”

Terminal-Based PIN Fraud in Canada Spreads to Toronto

Toronto, 29 August 2006 – Canadian police have made seven arrests as part of a continuing investigation into what might be a terrorist-connected scheme to skim PINs and other credit and debit card information from a point-of-sale terminal. The case, which has affected residents of Mississauga, a town near Toronto, involved a handheld terminal at a McDonald’s outlet inside a Wal-Mart store; to date the police have arrested seven suspects. Authorities are still trying to determine how much money was stolen in the nearly four-month scam.

The case follows similar schemes in Ottawa and Montreal in recent months in which fraudsters have used specially rigged POS terminals to capture and transmit card data, including PINs, reportedly netting about $6 million. In these cases, the fraudsters use the data with forged cards to drain cash from victims’ accounts through ATMs.

The apparent spread of the fraud to more Canadian cities comes in a country in which debit card use is especially high, unlike the U.S. card market, in which debit cards can be secured by either a PIN or a signature, the Canadian market allows only PINs.

Canadian banks reimbursed $70.4 million last year to customers who had been victimized by debit card fraud, according to Interac, the national electronic funds transfer network. The network says fraud occurred on less than 0.01% of all transactions. Interac released a study in September 2004 indicating debit card fraud the previous year had cost banks or cardholders some $44 million on 27,000 accounts. Interac processed 3.07 billion PIN-debit point of sale transactions worth $137.4 billion in 2005, according to network statistics. Overall, the network links 571,000 POS terminals for 391,000 merchants.

Trust Capability for RBC

Survey Shows Canadians Not Shielding Their Debit Card PIN Regularly

Toronto, October 19 2006 – Most Canadians recognize the importance of shielding their Personal Identification Number (PIN) at a bank machine or at the store checkout terminal, but the majority are still not protecting their PIN all of the time.

According to a survey commissioned by Interac Association, and conducted by The Strategic Counsel, 92% of Canadians recognize the importance of shielding their PIN at a bank machine or a debit card terminal. However, 60% do not always shield their PIN if they believe nobody can see them entering it, and 37% do not always shield their PIN even if they believe somebody can see them.

“Debit card fraud has evolved since the days of shoulder surfing, so whether somebody can see your PIN or not, cardholders should always protect their PIN when conducting a transaction,” said LeAnne Thorfinnson, VP, Operations, Interac Association. “Canadians love to use their debit cards and with the holiday shopping period fast approaching, Interac Association would like to remind cardholders that shielding their PIN is the single most important thing that they can do to reduce their chances of becoming a target of fraud.”

Criminals need two pieces of information to commit debit card fraud – the PIN and the magnetic stripe information on the card. If cardholders shield their PIN at all times, they make it more difficult for criminals to capture this key security feature.

Cardholders are protected by the Canadian Code of Practice for Consumer Debit Card Services, which ensures that all proven victims of debit card fraud will not suffer any financial losses. However, Merchants can still help prevent debit card fraud from happening at their locations by:

• Inspecting their terminal stations regularly for any signs of irregularities.

• Storing the PIN pad safely when not in use – merchants should treat their devices like cash.

• Working with their Merchant Service Provider to determine what steps they can take to prevent debit card fraud.

FEATURES

Riding the Wave of the Future: NCR Demonstrates RFID for Branch Banking

Toronto, October 22 2006 – NCR Corporation demonstrated how radio frequency identification (RFID), a technology associated with the retail, manufacturing and transportation sectors, can be used to make branch banking a more personalized experience. NCR’s look at how RFID could change the way that consumers bank was on display October 11th and 12th at the annual RBC Financial Group Applied Innovation Symposium in Toronto.

NCR’s new concept for the bank branch is the RFID Branch Portal, an archway equipped with RFID readers that scan information from RFID microchips embedded in a bank card, cell phone or personal digital assistant (PDA). With this permission-based, in-branch service, a customer’s information could be sent electronically to the branch counter staff, branch manager or loans officer, alerting them that a special customer has just entered the branch.

For example, information from the RFID-enabled bank card could allow counter staff to address the customer by name or provide “nolineup” service to special customers. Other examples might involve a branch manager using the alert signalled by the RFID card to remind customers that their term deposit is maturing shortly, and to give them an opportunity to discuss various reinvestment options during their inbranch visit. Or perhaps a customer’s pending car loan application has just been approved. The customer could be invited to complete the paperwork, on the spot.

The NCR demonstrations also showcased the latest security features for the automated teller machine (ATM). As Grossi explained, “In 2004, we demonstrated how a cell phone equipped with an RFID chip could be used for ‘contactless’ communication with an ATM. In 2005, the focus was on how biometric technologies like fingerprint recognition could provide an increased dimension of security at the ATM. Today, we are connecting all the dots with a fully loaded, highly secure Personas M Series 76 ATM that is equipped with a broad range of fraud-prevention and security features.”

Featured on this enhanced ATM is a card reader that supports the global EMV-certified chip-based card initiative, a new security standard aimed at reducing counterfeit card fraud and card skimming. Other security features include an integrated biometric (fingerprint recognition) device and NCR’s award-winning Intelligent Fraud Detection (IFD) technology which can sense any changes to the ATM environment. IFD reacts when a fraudulent device is added to or removed from the ATM, immediately triggering alarms and real-time alerts, even before any compromise has taken place. IFD is specially designed to prevent criminals from successfully copying or trapping a card, trying to use cameras to video the consumer’s personal identification number (PIN) or attempting to trap the cash. Rounding out the latest security measures are PIN pad privacy shields and customer privacy panels located on both sides of the terminal.

NCR Secure is designed to help the industry anticipate, plan and implement strategies to maintain consumer trust in the ATM channel. Based on a holistic approach to ATM security, NCR Secure provides the broadest range of fraud-fighting strategies, including NCR’s global security consultancy, award-winning hardware and software technology and end-user strategies to heighten consumer awareness of best practices.