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Online merchants are contesting more charge-backs this year than in 2007, suggest the findings of a recent survey by CyberSource Corp., a Mountain View, Calif.-based online-payment company. Results from the CyberSource 2008 Online Fraud Survey suggest merchants fought an average of 50% of their charge-backs, up from 47% in 2007 but down from 53% in 2006. A charge-back is a transaction a consumer contests by halting payment. CyberSource says merchants have won an average of 44% of their re-presented charge-back transactions this year, up from the 2007 average of 40% and the 42% win rate in 2006. Still, one-third of merchants fight less than 10% of their charge-back transactions. "For many merchants, this remains an untapped opportunity," CyberSource says. Online merchants in the United States and Canada will lose $4 billion in fraud this year, the survey data suggest (CardLine, 12/10).
