According to Gary Vaynerchuk, Belarusian-American entrepreneur, Co-founder of Resy and Empathy Wines, in 2021 credit card fraud increased by 24% in comparison to 2020. The percentage might be small but when we put it in numbers, the cost is high. Here are five ways to safeguard data in order to avoid any form of mishaps:

1. Be cautious of uploading documents on social media:
There are incidents where consumers upload documents on social media or online which have sensitive data or documents such as credit reports, bank statements etc. This type of data that carries personal contact and bank information can compromise a customer’s identity. A consumer should go through the document at length before uploading it on any online portal. If it is imperative to upload a sensitive document, a user should make sure that the portal is trustworthy and secure.

2. Checking the URL:
A user must thoroughly check the URL of the website before feeding in their personal information. There are incidents of ‘Pagejacking’ where clicking on a link may redirect the user to a website that they would be expected to open. Though the webpage would look exactly like the one on the actual website, the URL will always be different. This is mostly to deceive the user into feeding key data, which would get collected in the hacker’s database and later can be used for identity theft.

3. Phishing calls and messages:
Sometimes, users may receive calls or messages stating that they have won a prize from the bank. This will further go on to ask them to authenticate themselves with the help of their bank account number/card number, an OTP number that you might have received on your phone, or other personal data. As a preventive measure, the consumers should not entertain such communication. If a fraudulent transaction has taken place, the user should inform their associated firm immediately.

4. Avoid downloading files from unknown sites:
Downloading files from unknown sources can create many problems when it comes to keeping your data safe on the computer. The downloaded file is in the form of a document/song/video etc. and can contain malware/spyware that can dig up the data stored in your PC (personal computer) and can transmit it to any remote location. If it is necessary that you download a file from an unknown source, make sure to get it scanned with software that helps detect any such anomalies.

5. Change your passwords frequently:
Changing your password frequently helps in preventing fraud. These passwords can range from your shopping apps, social media passwords, or bank login passwords. If the passwords are dynamic, it would make it hard for fraudsters to trace or hack. In addition, also make sure that the strength of your password is strong, making it difficult to guess. Avoid using combinations that are easily relatable to you such as your phone number, date of birth, pet’s name etc.

With a growing market of people going online and the push for a cashless economy, methods to prevent fraud by protecting data would go a long way to keep your money where it belongs.

The post 5 ways to protect data from online fraud appeared first on International Finance.

Equifax announced on September 7, 2017 that unauthorized users accessed the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some instances, driver’s license numbers of consumers from mid-may through July 2017. Equifax also admitted that credit card numbers for approximately 209,000 US consumers were accessed.

Lead plaintiffs Jamie McGonnigal and Brian Spector accuse Equifax of failing to properly secure and safeguard consumers’ personally identifiable information which resulted in criminals obtaining their personal and financial information.

The complaint alleges that not only could Equifax have prevented this data breach—especially considering the warnings raised by the recent data breach of their competitor Experian—but that once discovered, they failed to notify consumers in a timely manner. Equifax acknowledged they discovered a breach had occurred on July 29, 2017, but they failed to announce it to the public until more than a month later.

As a result of the company’s negligence and failure to properly safeguard consumers’ records, Mr. McGonnigal and Mr. Spector allege their personal and financial information was stolen and they incurred out-of-pocket costs for identity theft protection and unauthorized use of their financial accounts. In addition, they allege the likelihood of impending injuries in the future since criminals have access to their personal and financial information.

Leading Data Breach Attorney Says Equifax Breach is “Shocking”

Class action members are represented by one of the leading data breach attorneys in the country: John Yanchunis. He currently serves as lead counsel in the Yahoo data breach case, one of the largest class actions in history. Previously, he represented consumers in the Home Depot Inc. and Target Corp. data breach cases which settled for $13 million and $10 million respectively.

He has litigated some of the largest data breaches in history, yet when asked about the Equifax breach, John Yanchunis described it as “shocking.”

“Equifax contains one of the largest databases of consumer information and they should have been better prepared for any attempt to penetrate its systems,” he said.

Three Equifax Managers Sold Stock Prior to Data Breach Announcement

Coinciding with news of the data breach is information that three managers sold their stock in Equifax just prior to the announcement. After learning of these events, Attorney John Yanchunis said the data breach may justify punitive damages.

“Equifax has acknowledged that it discovered the breach on July 29th. What it hasn’t explained is why it waited so long to make an announcement that the breach had occurred,” he stated.

“The profiteering before the company’s announcement is astounding.”

Plaintiffs seek statutory damages under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) and state consumer protection statutes, reimbursement of out-of-pocket losses and other compensatory damages, credit monitoring services beyond Equifax’s current two-year offer, and an order requiring Equifax to improve their data security measures.

The post Morgan & Morgan files lawsuit on behalf of millions of Equifax data breach victims appeared first on International Finance.

Nodaway Valley Bank will look to Verifi to implement their end-to-end payment protection and management solutions. Verifi’s suite of services enables issuing banks to work directly with merchants to access critical dispute data and settle the matter before a dispute becomes an expensive chargeback.

“Chargebacks continue to be a huge challenge to our entire industry,” said Matthew Katz, CEO of Verifi. “Our partnership with Nodaway Valley Bank expands our network coverage in the mid-size bankcard market, consistent with our strategy to provide the broadest support and protection to merchants and issuers of all sizes. We are pleased to be working with such an historic institution to provide greater value to their merchant and consumer customers.”

Based in Missouri, Nodaway Valley Bank has provided their regional clientele with the latest banking services for almost 150 years.

“We chose Verifi based on their leadership within the industry, and their ability to expertly address our chargeback challenges,” said Jim Davis, Chief Financial Officer of Nodaway Valley Bank. “Verifi’s proven solutions enable us to reduce operating costs, streamline our review process, and enhance both merchant and cardholder satisfaction.”

Recognised as the Best Chargeback Management Program for the last five consecutive years by the Card Not Present Expo, Verifi’s Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network (CDRN) prevents hundreds of thousands of chargeback cases every month, providing real protection from costly fees, fines or penalties, and cardholder dissatisfaction which affect merchants and issuers alike. With year-over-year growth since the program’s launch in 2007, Verifi’s unique and patented CDRN “closed loop” process directly integrates with issuers, providing unmatched service, quality and accuracy for merchants in collaboration with issuers to resolve disputed payments and dramatically minimise chargebacks and cardholder dissatisfaction. By providing merchants with visibility into fraud and non-fraud customer disputes in near real-time, the CDRN process provides the highest level of true chargeback protection, while avoiding false positives that result in lost sales, increased manual review time, and decreased profits. CDRN covers approximately 50% of the US market and boasts a 90% resolution rate.

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