Trendlines and Survey Markers: Consumers Prefer Charge Cards, But Still Learning About Them

A pair of mid-summer surveys come our way, showing that Americans really like using the plastic in their wallets, but are still learning all the ins-and-outs of what it means to have both credit, and a credit score.

A Midsummer Night’s Gift Card Giving

Well, strictly speaking, the “Midsummer Night” of Shakespearean fame comes just after the summer solstice in June.  Here in America, summer seems to run from Memorial Day through Labor Day, with July 4th in-between, making July our own “midsummer.”

For the 4th: Fireworks and Fiscal Facts

Our annual holiday week 4th of July “snapshot” the nation’s economy commences with this week’s post.

In last summer’s Independence Day overview, we noted a AAA report saying that more Americans were planning to travel, due to the uptick in the economy, even though gas prices were then at their highest levels in years.

Due Diligence: Slow EMV adoption; Fed Calls For Coordinated Security

It is a constant tussle, struggle — pick your word — for merchants and consumers striving for digital safety in their daily rounds of charge card and debit use. And with the constant news of data breaches and new malware discoveries, it sometimes seems such relative “safety” is a grail that will always be just out of reach.

Solstice Roundup: EMV Transitions, Watch Your Samsung, and… Emojis!

Summer solstice will be here before we can even get next week’s blog post up!  So even though temperatures here in AVPS’ neighborhood are already hitting triple digits, let’s officially welcome the season of beach-going, travel adventures, and more.

Smart Cards, Smarter Passwords

The nature of payments, and how they’re made, continues to change — whether credit, debit, or prepaid. Payments continue to move from one digital platform to the next, sometimes leaving customers wondering if making any of the changes are worth it, or if something even newer will come along first.

Summertime — And Is the (Consumer) Spendin’ More Easy?

Memorial Day’s arrival — and recent departure — marks the unofficial kick off for summer, at least as far as travel plans, imminent graduations, giddy weddings, and other features of what is supposed to be more languorous calendar time.

Old Hacks, New Payments

It’s a long, fascinating moment of transition in the world of payments — and for payments around the world.  That changing landscape includes virtual wallets, growing P2P payments, and ways to make existing platforms more secure — as with the EMV standards coming to American payment cards this fall.

May Day, Pt. II: More Tips For Keeping Your POS Devices Safe In a Malware World

Last week, we talked about the RawPOS Malware that has been affecting Windows-based point-of-sale devices, and we passed along some tips for upgrading, and guarding, against such attacks on you, and your customers. This week, we finish up our “pointers” for helping you keep all your gear secure. Here are both “the basics,” and a little beyond the “basics,” to maximize transaction security: