Data security

The inadvertent downloading of thousands of consumer records to a thumb drive at the FDIC could happen anywhere. Here's a look at what the FDIC did right and what it could have done better.

With fraudsters gearing up to assault mobile wallets, U.S. financial institutions considering a bank-branded mobile wallet would be wise to take note of the lessons learned when Apple Pay made its debut in the fall of 2014.

If the EMV chip-card migration in the U.S. taught the payments industry anything, it's that some players meet compliance deadlines, while others let them slip by.

The U.S. migration to EMV chip technology – intended to reduce card fraud, provide global interoperability, and enable safer payment transactions – may prove to be a valuable move for more than just the payments industry.

The word “tokenization” is being used far too broadly to describe a variety of payment security methods that perform different security functions.

Data breaches have become scarily commonplace. But even small financial institutions can take action to thwart hackers and minimize losses.

A former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. employee took off with data on some 44,000 customers of closed banks when she left the agency in late February, according to an agency memo uncovered by The Washington Post.

Could blockchain be the backbone of a universal digital identity system?

A taxpayer's annual refund is a big prize that fraudsters are eager to steal. Many new risks are being introduced by new technology, but there are cross-industry efforts to combat these new schemes and make sure each refund gets to the proper household.

Time has run out for “knuckle-busters,” the clunky contraptions merchants needed for decades to accept card transactions, but their legacy—the raised characters embossed on payment cards—is proving difficult to stamp out.

Some retailers falsely think that if they are using EMV chip credit cards that they have eliminated any chance of security breaches at the register since the EMV approach is stronger than conventional credit cards.

Card-not-present fraud is creating "silent revenue killers" for card issuers because many consumers will close their accounts after dealing with fraud from shopping online, new research indicates.

A data encryption method that Heartland Payment Systems CEO Robert Carr swears by has received high-level acceptance as part of a new standard.

Rather than increased emphasis on the card, or even the way we pay, more needs to be done to secure the terminal through which the transaction is processed.

More than two-thirds of all U.S.-issued MasterCard consumer credit cards are now chip-enabled and the number of merchants accepting EMV transactions continues to climb, MasterCard said March 31.

Mobile wallets and related technologies are starting to look very different. Whether they are absorbed into other mobile offerings or removed from the phone altogether, these systems are looking less and less like the old-fashioned billfolds they replace.

An 11-page paper by the agency signaled its intent to take a higher-profile role in ensuring that regulators are not inappropriately hampering banks' adoption of new technologies to reach customers, while also keeping an eye out that institutions are able to handle the risks involved.

Despite email filters and training programs, bank customers still click on fake emails and malicious links at an alarming rate. Newer technologies and methods hold promise for getting phishing under control.

A white paper released Thursday said the agency might issue new guidance on fintech product development, third-party risk management and new products targeting the underbanked; streamline its licensing procedures; and appoint experts on "responsible innovation." It is still deciding whether to open an office dedicated to monitoring the fintech sector.

Some debit card users are so loyal to their cards that many would go so far as to say using a PIN is more convenient — and less secure — than a using a signature, according to a recent report from Auriemma Consulting Group.