Credit Card Processing Security Concerns

As an online merchant accepting credit card payments, you have numerous security issues that you must be aware of for the safety of your business and your consumers. At this time, there are two main aspects of credit card security for credit card processing, including ?AVS? and ?CVV?. Both allow credit card transactions to be completed anonymously over the internet, and any merchant accepting credit cards online should require both forms of information of your customers.

Address Verification Service

The ?AVS?, or address verification service, is used to determine that the address provided by a customer matches the address associated with a credit card account. This helps generate confidence that the person who is entering the credit card details is the person who owns it. While the AVS is not required to process credit card transactions, when it is provided the transaction processor will send a response back with details of how much of the address provided matches the address on the credit card.

A credit card will not be denied if the address is entered wrong, it is up to the merchant to decide what to do if the address only matches partially or not at all. You can deny the sale, or require the buyer submit additional information, or give them the opportunity to correct the address information, before processing the transaction.

Card Verification Value

The ?CVV?, or card verification value, sometimes referred to as the CVV-2 is a three to four digit number found on the back of American Express, MasterCard and Visa cards. It?s on the card but not on any statements, so that if an individual has found a credit card statement in the trash, they aren?t able to complete a sale that requires the CVV code for verification purposes. When a customer is able to enter the CVV code, it?s a strong indication that the customer has the credit card in hand, which increases the potential of the card belonging to the person who is attempting to use it to make a purchase online.

Most credit card fraud online occurs when a thief has found a discarded receipt or a thrown out credit card statement, but by requiring the CVV code, the merchant can eliminate that type of fraud.

If a CVV number is entered and is incorrect, the transaction will be declined by the credit card issuer.

Providing Consumers with Top Security

If you are going to accept credit cards online for payment for products or services offered through your website, it?s imperative that you provide your customers with a guarantee that you?re protecting their credit card information.

Credit card processing typically requires that the customer?s information is transferred about four times, which means there are four instances when someone could gain access to the cardholder?s details.
When a customer first sends the credit card information to you via your checkout or web based form. You are solely responsible for security as the internet merchant, at this stage in the credit card transaction process. Having a secure server and a valid security certificate with the https protocol will protect and encrypt private information you receive from customers.

You will want to be sure that the credit card transaction processing software you use for your business is secure by using a reputable processing company.
As customer information is moved in and out of a database through the transaction process, the security must be top of the line- and this is ensured by choosing a solid company that offers encrypted software for this part of the process.

Finally, when customer credit card information is viewed or handled by you or your staff, it?s important that you ensure security at this stage as well.

This article has been provided by Creditor Web. Creditor Web has the articles and other credit card processing resources to help you choose the right provider.

Make Sure Your Credit Card Payment is Processed!

If you don't follow the credit card company's guidelines, they can wait up to five days to credit your account. The Fair Credit Billing Act requires that they credit your account the day your payment arrives, but some credit card companies demand you follow particular requirements, like sending your payment in a pre-printed envelope, in order to credit your account in a timely manner.

Even if you send your payment to your creditor on time, it could end up being late if you don't follow their rules. With the average late fee now on the edge of $40, you don't want that to happen. Here are three tips to make sure your payment is processed quickly and without hassles at all:

Pay The Minimum First

Pay the minimum as soon as you get your bill. This is very important if you are sending your payment through the mail. You can always send a larger payment later in the month when you have more money. Many credit card companies are ?red flagging? accounts on which the minimum is being paid every month, so add at least $5 if you can.

Moreover, and as a side note, you should never pay only the minimum on your credit cards if you want to reduce your debt. Interests contribute to accumulate debt easily. Start by paying as much as you can on the highest interest credit card and then continue with the next one. This way you?ll be able to become debt-free and worry less about your credit cards and their payments.

Be Careful with Checks

Be sure your check is legible and the payment amount is correct. Include the credit card account number on the check. Don't forget to sign the check. Common mistakes like not signing a check or illegible checks are responsible for many late payment fees that add up to already packed debts making things even harder for debtors.

The above precautions are very important. Credit Card companies won?t take any responsibility on this matter. If the check is wrong or illegible you won?t get additional time to pay without a penalty and this delinquency will be informed to credit bureaus. Thus, it is better if you make sure everything is correct or choose another payment method like debit from bank accounts.

Be Careful with Mail

Send payment with proper postage to the payment address requested by the issuer. Just to be on the safe side, mail your payment at least one week in advance of the due date. Ten days to two weeks beforehand is even better. If payments do not arrive, you will have time to try with other payment methods or even go personally to the credit card issuer?s offices and deliver payment on hand.

Mary Wise, a professional consultant with twenty years in the financial field, helps people in the process of securing personal loans, mortgage, refinance or consolidation loans and preventing consumers from falling into the hands of fraudulent lenders. In her website Badcreditloanservices.com you will find more useful tips and interesting financial articles on this and many other related topics. At http://www.badcreditfinancialexperts.com/article/ you will find more useful tips and interesting articles on this subject and other financial related topics.

Low Cost Credit Card Processing

Low cost and efficient credit card processing is very important to the success of any online or offline business. Low cost credit card processing involves a cheaper means to accept credit card numbers, apply them to the merchant's account, and obtain payment from the creditor for the amount. A business?s success or failure depends on whether or not it accepts credit card orders.

Low cost credit card processing is indispensable to raise the profitability of your business. Many people waste considerable amounts of money on extravagant processing. Often, processing statements are so difficult to read that it is virtually impossible to estimate how much money you are actually paying. Low cost credit card processing helps you run a more successful business operation.

In the United States, the cost of credit card processing is about $10 to $20 (per month) in flat fees, plus a small percentage of your sales, known as a discount rate. The discount rate is as low as 1.69% for an offline business, while discount rate for mail order and online merchants is about 2.19%. Using a low cost credit card processing technique, the transaction fee averages only about 25 cents for all merchants.

Low cost credit card processing falls into three types. The first is using a virtual terminal that allows manual addition of mail. The second employs a simple integration technique that connects your website directly to the credit card and bank system. The third type uses an advanced mechanism for custom-linking your system to other more composite systems using a transaction gateway server.

Lots of card processing companies offer you reliable, low cost and comprehensive credit card processing. A reliable low cost credit card processing service uses modern encryption technology to ensure security.

Credit Card Processing provides detailed information on Credit Card Processing, Online Credit Card Processing, Credit Card Processing Software, Wireless Credit Card Processing and more. Credit Card Processing is affiliated with Wireless Credit Card Terminals

Playing the Credit Card Processing Field - To Switch or Not to Switch

Imagine a company that specializes in setting up merchant accounts for new businesses or established ones that have never had credit card processing capability. The firm's collective pride and confidence swell when such business owners report that they have selected the company after performing much due diligence - some researching for months before taking the leap and deciding which credit card processing vendor to select.

However, while the merchant account providers' representatives may be enthusiastic speaking with merchants who are new to the credit card arena, they may typically feel a little uneasy speaking with merchants who are already processing with another vendor ' as if they’re walking on someone else’s lawn.

This is not to suggest that the representatives are not open and convinced that they can save these type of merchants money, making their lawn a little greener, so to speak. It is especially gratifying to the representatives that merchants who have experience accepting credit cards are finally aware of all the relevant fees – many of which may not have been disclosed when the original account was opened. However, during a discussion with credit card processing veterans, the given merchant account agents not only want to emphasize the savings that will result by switching to their program, but the incredible responsive service that the merchants can expect in the future. This is welcome news for many who have had unpleasant experiences with their current credit card processing provider.

Despite the fact that the company in question can convert many merchants who errantly chose another merchant account company, there will exist other business owners who will remain on the fence -- uncertain whether to switch or not.

One consideration that may be factored into the decision is whether a termination or cancellation policy is in effect. Many companies institute a rather severe penalty for canceling an account (many charging a base amount plus missed revenue from lost processing months) that can even surpass $1,000. Will the savings realized on a new account, in time, make up for this penalty? (Please note that many credit card processing providers do not have any termination fee.)

Merchants may also need to weigh whether it is worth their time setting up shop with another credit card processing company. A new application has to be completed, and assuming successful underwriting determination, a retail merchant then has to have his/her credit card terminal enabled to accept transactions from the new processor via a download process. An Internet merchant will have to alter html coding to post transactions to a new vendor.

While the allocation of time to switch credit card processing providers is generally modest (i.e., should not take more than several hours, and often, much less time), it still may be overwhelming for the merchant who feels under tremendous time constraints. Recently, I spoke with a harried business owner who does about $100,000 in credit card processing volume per month. He asserted that he has no time to thoroughly evaluate our proposal but will find some time if we save him at least $100 on a monthly basis. Needless to say, we are examining his statement with a fine, too comb, certain that we will provide this savings to the merchant and that he will find the time to switch to our credit card processing program.

Even despite any resultant credit card processing savings, a merchant may also place importance on the relationship that he/she has with the sales agent. One of our clients emailed us in distress over a Holiday weekend and we were able to solve a problem that appeared insurmountable to the merchant. She feels indebted to us (she need not feel this way) and always lets me know that, “We have a customer for life.” So even if she is presented with a competitor’s quote where another agent claims that she can save money by switching, she will politely decline the offer. As one agent sagaciously stated, “People buy from people, not processors.”

Merchants need to feel comfortable that their rates are extremely competitive, that they have someone to turn to (after the account … and especially in times of crisis) to answer questions and rectify problems, and that they are receiving great value for their processing dollars. When a merchant is happy with their merchant account partner, there is no need to look in another direction. Conversely, if a merchant experiences nothing but consternation with his/her current credit card processing vendor, then the merchant needs to look elsewhere to satisfy their credit card processing needs.

Andy Lax is an Account Manager with IntelliCollect, a credit card processing vendor that offers an affordable merchant account with excellent customer support. Those currently processing credit cards with another vendor would be very wise to examine IntelliCollect's program, comparing rates. Please see the following site, http://www.intelli-collect.com to reduce your credit card processing expenses.

Credit Card Processing and the Pitfalls

Disadvantages of Credit Card Processing

The benefits of credit card processing online usually outweigh the disadvantages. Unfortunately there are some pitfalls involved with credit card processing you should be aware of. The more knowledge you have going into a situation the more likely you are to come out of it ahead.

One of the biggest pitfalls associated with credit card processing is refunds or charge backs. Of these charge backs are potentially the most damaging. Most merchant account providers charge a hefty fee for any chargebacks they have to process. Some will close your account if you have too many so it is best you avoid them altogether.

There are ways you can reduce refunds or chargebacks. One you should make sure you have a clearly defined refund policy. You could for example limit the amount of time a customer has to request a refund. You should also ensure that your customers have a legitimate reason to ask for a refund. You can minimize refund requests by offering special bonuses to encourage better customer satisfaction.

Another way to limit chargebacks is by being open and up front about your business. If you use a third party processor for example to handle credit card payments you better let your customers know. Otherwise they may not recognize the third parties name when they receive their credit card statement and ask for a refund. This is an honest but also costly mistake.

You should also make sure you have adequate customer service which may help you iron out kinks with customers before a refund is requested. Good customer service goes a long way to preventing future problems with credit card processing.

Article by Frank Owen, visit his web site on credit card processing for more information on credit card processing http://www.creditcardprocessinginsider.com