All Blog Posts (1,083)

Pay-at-the-Pump Skimming Using Bluetooth

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Expert

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 10, 2010 at 2:11pm — No Comments

Mobile Banking Gets a $5 Billion Shot in the Arm

You've got to admire the pluck of the Chinese.

That pluck has given mobile banking a big shot in the arm as China Mobile announced that it purchased a 20% in Shanghai Pudong Development Bank for $5.83 billion. The acquisition puts China Mobile in the unique position of being able to further mobile bankin

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 10, 2010 at 7:02am — No Comments

End the Yes/No Game of 'Are You Lending?'

I am not sure it is even possible to quantify just how much bank lobbying dollars are being spent today trying to convince Capitol Hill that “banks are lending” – whatever that means.

This is not money well-spent. Firstly, it boils down a far more complex answer to the lending question to a "yes" or "no." It is like stopping the average person on the street and asking him, “Yes or no, are you healthy?” Does anyone truly know?

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 10, 2010 at 7:00am — 4 Comments

Hacking Humans Naiveté

Robert Siciliano Identity Theft Expert

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 9, 2010 at 10:06pm — No Comments

You Know It: Regulators Bone Up on Bankings' Inner Workings

“Full faith and trust.” This is our definition of the federal government's backing. The greatest economic miracle in history, America, has over the decades conjured up such passionate faith that the perceived risk of US government bond default traditionally was marked at zero.

Of course, we can look back over the last two years and realize that the federal government had plenty of slack in its hold of the economic reins of this country. Arguably greater than all

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 9, 2010 at 2:30pm — No Comments

Case Shiller: Slowly Getting Better

Case Shiller

Improving

The S&P Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index posted a 2.5% decrease from a year earlier, a significant easing from the 19%, 15% and 8.7% declines in the rest of 2009.

The indexes showed prices in 10 major metropolitan are… Continue

Added by Howard Bell on March 8, 2010 at 10:30pm — No Comments

The $10,000 Fake ID

When I was 17 my friend “Baldo” as he was known by all was the Fake ID Master. He also fixed TV’s and still does today. But he didn’t actually create “fake ID’s”, he altered real ones. The technology he used back then is still used today. It’s called Crayola Crayons. He would take a Massachusetts ID and heat the laminate over the stove and peel it back. Then he’d dab a premixed batch of liquid aqua green/blue crayon on the left side of an 8 and make it a 3. H

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 8, 2010 at 1:59pm — No Comments

how to make money blogging

Firstly, we all want to know How to Make Money Online, and one of the best ways I have found is by creating blogs. In this article I intend to show you how you too can learn How to Make Money Blogging by telling you how combining the techniques I have gathered from across the web helps to make me $$$ every day. Secondly, I am not trying to sell you my latest “Get Rich Quick” scheme because I don’t have one. Each eBook you read will have a wealth of information within them which will, without

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Added by sam petrova on March 8, 2010 at 12:10pm — No Comments

Biometrics: To Be or Not to Be?

New Hampshire, USA. “Live Free or Die,” baby. The official state motto emblazoned on every NH license plate has always intrigued. The thought of someone from NH might bring to mind revolutionaries or America militia sympathizers.

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 7, 2010 at 10:53pm — No Comments

Assassin or Identity Theft Victims?

It made a little buzz in the States, but over in Dubai, as more details become available about the assassination of senior Hamas terrorist Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai, it is becoming apparent to

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 5, 2010 at 3:03pm — No Comments

When FTC Sends a Warning, Data Theft Has Jumped the Shark

When Fonzie jumped the shark on his HOG, that spelt the end of Happy Days.

The FTC sending a warning to 100 companies and agencies that their employees are leaking client and sensitive data on the web via Peer to Peer file sharing (P2P) is the single most pathetic and embarrassing communicatio

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Added by Robert Siciliano on March 4, 2010 at 10:08pm — No Comments

INNOVATION: Will JetBlue Swoop In on Banking?

JetBlue started a "bank" today.

No, not a real bank, but a Travel Bank. The Travel Bank is designed to house the credits due to members of its frequent flier program, known as the True Blue program. (Yes, I'm a member.)

JetBlue insists the Travel Bank is not a real bank. It doesn't accept deposits, nor does it extend credit. But it comes with an account number (16 digits long, which is extremely bank-like to me) and does store financial value for

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 4, 2010 at 12:00pm — 1 Comment

PAYMENTS: Watch Out, PayPal

As we shared a coffee this morning, an industry consultant and I were talking about how traditional banks had largely ceded online payments to PayPal. "Boy, they let that one get away from them," I said.

And then I saw this item. In just eight months, Cash

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 4, 2010 at 11:30am — No Comments

The Way for Innovating Banks to Go - Tip 9: Choose “the one” with extra care?

Tip 9: Choose “the one” with extra care? The choice of technology partner can make or break banking innovation. The vendor landscape is dotted with players with varying bandwidth and specialisation. So, how does a bank go about making the right selection? To start with, they must examine the consulting credentials of the partner. For instance, can they advise the bank on how to re-engineer their processes or improve the effectiveness of their existing IT infrastructure? Next, they must… Continue

Added by Rajashekara V. Maiya on March 3, 2010 at 3:00am — No Comments

INNOVATION: BofA Plays IP Hardball

If you or your bank are engaged in mobile banking, relationship marketing, data-mining for banking customers, or giving consumers control over their personal information, take heed. Bank of America Corp. is trying to secure patents that theoretically might force you to pay it licensing fees.

Way deep below the radar, BofA has filed four patent requests over the last six months that would give the megabank seemingly substan

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Added by JJ Hornblass on March 2, 2010 at 3:30pm — 2 Comments

COMPLIANCE: Capitulation on Financial Reform

Reports surfacing this morning have regulatory reform legislation inching closer to reality. The New York Times is reporting that regulatory reform is gaining "traction."

So what will the eventual legislation look like? Reading between the lines, here's what can be expected:

Treasury will lead the proposed systemic risk council, with the Federal Reserve only taking a sub

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Added by JJ Hornblass on February 26, 2010 at 10:26am — 3 Comments

Freddie Mac Weekly Update

30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Over 5 Percent

30-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 5.05 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending February 25, 2010, up from last week when it averaged 4.93 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.07 percent.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 4.40 p… Continue

Added by Howard Bell on February 25, 2010 at 10:00pm — No Comments

Mortgage Bankers Association Weekly Update

Mortgage Bankers Association for the week of 2/24/2010

Market Composite Index: (loan application volume) decreased 8.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier

Refinance Index: decreased 8.9 percent from the previous week. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 7.3 percent from one w… Continue

Added by Howard Bell on February 25, 2010 at 10:00pm — No Comments

Royal Media Group Acquires Air Cargo Management Group

NEW YORK, NY – Royal Media Group, a leading information company, announced that it has acquired Air Cargo Management Group of Seattle.

ACMG (www.cargofacts.com) is the nation's leading information provider to the air cargo, express and freighter aircraft industry. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The purchase was facilitated by Whitestone Communications.

ACMG is the first acquisition by Royal Media Group and represents Royal… Continue

Added by Molly Devine on February 24, 2010 at 3:30pm — No Comments

'New Risk Management' Needs Accurate Data

Two weeks ago I questioned what form a ‘new risk management’ would take and how far the industry is rallied around the 2010 GARP Risk theme of “Transforming Risk into a new world order”. I had hoped that the convention would reveal risk managers finally beginning to understand the vital role data management plays in helping untangle messy internal processes – and at last I wasn’t disappointed.

Of course data is important. Virtually all processes drive off common and shared data sets… Continue

Added by Neil Edelstein on February 24, 2010 at 1:53pm — No Comments