The Conference Board has released some new results from its Consumer Internet Barometer which found that nearly 52 percent of online consumers are extremely concerned about security when banking online, although the level of concerned consumers has fallen from 62 percent in 2004.

New York Times reporter John Markoff covers recent research by a group of European computer researchers who have demonstrated inserting a software virus into RFID tags.

Wells Fargo has announced the launch of "Guided by History", a new corporate blog devoted exclusively to earthquake and disaster preparedness. The blog's launch is timed to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire.

Whenever we start thinking that the world of checking is coming to an end, we learn about a new initiative that is making checks better. Glenbrook partner Carol Coye Benson was briefed last week by Harland on their new Validify solution to combat identity theft and check fraud.

NACHA has announced that its board of directors has approved conducting a pilot to test online transactions in which consumers would be authenticated by their own financial institutions, and initiate private, secure electronic payments for consumers' online funds transfers, bill payments, and purchases via their financial institutions' online banking web sites .

Dylan McGrath reports for EE Times on comments by Frans van Houten, Philips Semiconductors' top executive, in which he predicted that, by 2010, half of all new wireless handsets shipped will contain embedded near-field communication (NFC) technology, a short-range wireless connectivity technology that enables two-way interactions among electronic devices.

Greg Sandoval reports for CNET News.com that OfficeMax has conducted that an independent study by a security expert who no indication that the company's customer information was lost as had been rumored in earlier reports about the recent debit card fraud attacks.

Eileen Alt Powell reports for the AP with more details about VantageScore, the new credit scoring system announced yesterday by the three major credit bureaus Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Note: Throughout the day, as Payments News happens, this post is updated.

• Alliance & Leicester Selects PassMark to Protect Online Banking Customers From Fraud and Identity Theft
• Canada.com: Smart cards and cashless payments catching on in Canada
• JCB gets onboard with PayPass
• CSIA Calls on Congress to Refocus on Data Security Legislation
• PacificNet's Subsidiary ChinaGoHi Launches Stored-Value Card for Value-Added Financial Services in China
• Singapore's saturated credit card industry headed for consolidation: DBS
• Sun And ActivIdentity Team Up On Enterprise Identity
• GE to Launch Consumer Finance Program with Polaris
• New York Times: North Fork Bank Deal's Payout Plan Questioned
• Eurogiro Networks Enlists Entrust to Help Secure Cross-Border Payments
• Biometrics too unreliable, says EU data protection head And watch out for uber-databases too...