Last week, the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Safe Credit Cards Project released a set of standards "designed to prevent deceptive and dangerous credit card practices and called for legislation to outlaw such practices. Developed in partnership with the Sandler Foundation, the Safe Credit Card Standards seek both to protect consumers and preserve banks’ ability to manage risk when extending credit." READ MORE

In January 2009, Gemalto launched a new web site: www.JustAskGemalto.com - "dedicated to providing the latest news and tips to keep personal information safe while enjoying the technology we use everyday."

Based on activity on the new web site since it was launched, the most frequently viewed questions are related to the loss of one’s mobile phone: “Lost my phone! What about my contacts?” and “What can I do if my mobile phone is stolen?

Other popular topics are the security of social networking sites, blogs and the growing use of e-commerce.

Visitors also expressed particular interest in questions related to passwords and when to safeguard access to personal or financial information stored online: “Are passwords safe?” and “No one knows my passwords, why are passwords an identity theft risk?”

The top 5 questions in the "Buying" category asked by consumers were:

1. What is the safest way to pay online?
2. How do I know if it is safe to enter my credit card information when I am shopping online?
3. What about using credit cards to pay online? How safe is that?
4. Why would you move your credit card into your phone? If it gets stolen, someone could use it, couldn’t they?
5. I often shop at the same websites: should I save my payment information for future purchases?

U.S. Bank has announced that its customers who have been earning miles on Northwest Airlines by using their WorldPerks Visa cards will now be able to earn points toward free flights on over 150 airlines with no blackout dates or award ticket redemption fees with new U.S. Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa cards. READ MORE

Visa has announced the launch of what it is calling "the world’s first commercial Visa mobile payments service for point-of-sale transactions using Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. The service marks the first time consumers can purchase an NFC-enabled mobile device off the shelf and use that device to make Visa payWave-enabled transactions at the point-of-sale instead of using their payment card." The new service is being launched first in Malaysia. READ MORE

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• Digital East Asia: China Mobile Partners with Alipay for Mobile Payments
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• Meta Payment Systems(R) Launches Gift Card as a Proud Sponsor of the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.(R)
• Digital Transactions: Eyeing New Markets, A Niche Payment Player Wards off Recession - about eLayaway LLC
• New Mercator Advisory Group Report: Challenges in Global Prepaid Card Markets: 2009
• AuctionBytes: Merchant Attack Exposes Vulnerability in eBay's PayPal Service - Part 2
• NetBanker: Quick Guide to the Upcoming FinovateStartup Conference - April 28 in San Francisco
• United Airlines to Transition to Cash-Free Cabin on United-Operated Flights in North America
• NYTimes.com: Letter to the Editor - Credit Card Holders, Squeezed Twice by the Banks
• Minnesota Public Radio: No more WorldPerks from USBank (about the Delta/Northwest merger)
• New Research by Mercator Advisory Group: Prepaid Card Fraud and Risk Management
• WSJ.com: A Leader to Bank On (Book review of The House of Dimon: How JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon Rose to the Top of the Financial World by Patricia Crisafulli)
• The Financial Services Club's Blog: Top 10 Banks in the World 2009
• payALtax Makes Paying Taxes to the State of Alabama, with a Credit Card or Debit Card, Less Expensive for Alabama Taxpayers