International Business News - Card http://www.ibtimes.com All articles are copyrighted by IBTimes.com 400 100 http://www.ibtimes.com/ http://www.ibtimes.com/images/top_logo_ibt2_3.gif One reason that the prepaid calling card market is ripe for fraud and deception is that it is so easy to get into the business. Calling card providers don't need to run their own telecommunications networks. Instead, they just need to buy wholesale long-distance minutes from telecom carriers. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20081005/calling-card-business-is-easy-market-to-enter.htm Sun, 05 Oct 2008 16:00:35 EDT Rosalba Posada can tick off a list of problems she has encountered trying to use prepaid calling cards to stay in touch with family back in Colombia. There were the cards that didn't deliver as many minutes as promised and the cards that charged extra fees to call a cell phone. There were the cards that offered several hundred minutes of calling time, but began deducting minutes if they were not all used in a single call. There was the card that had already expired when Posada tried to use it just a few months after buying it. And there was the card that simply didn't work at all. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20081005/fraud-plagues-prepaid-calling-card-market.htm Sun, 05 Oct 2008 15:54:14 EDT Bank of America this week launched a checking program that enables customers to support three major charities through their regular banking. The American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association and American Heart Association will all benefit from the "Unite. Give. Cure." accounts, the newest product in the bank's group of affinity accounts and cards. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20081001/bank-of-america-checking-program-to-help-charities.htm Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:31:40 EDT The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday passed legislation that would limit surprise interest rate increases and fees for credit card users, but the bill faces an uncertain fate in the Senate. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080923/us-house-passes-credit-card-reform-bill.htm Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:32:00 EDT The percentage of people who were delinquent on their credit card payments rose slightly in the second quarter from the same time last year, while average debt per borrower jumped 8.6 percent, according to credit reporting agency TransUnion LLC. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080915/credit-card-delinquency-rate-debt-levels-up-in-2q.htm Mon, 15 Sep 2008 10:17:03 EDT Police didn't have much trouble finding a man accused of using a stolen credit card--he signed his own name on one of the receipts. The 21-year-old Iowa City man is accused of using the credit card to buy a latte at a coffee house and to buy cigarettes at a tobacco store. When he used the allegedly stolen credit card to buy the smokes, he signed the receipt with his own signature. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080904/alleged-thief-leaves-giveaway-clue-_-his-signature.htm Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:49:50 EDT Iowa City police say they didn't have much trouble finding a man accused of using a stolen credit card--he signed his own name to the receipts. Police said the man used the stolen credit card to buy a latte at a coffee house and to buy cigarettes at a tobacco store. Police said the credit card was reported stolen from an unlocked apartment last month. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080903/alleged-credit-card-thief-signs-name-on-receipts.htm Wed, 03 Sep 2008 20:18:28 EDT If Hurricane Katrina was one big lesson in government bungling, Gustav has been an open-book test of whether the politicians learned anything from the disaster. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/121927-gustav-political-report-card.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080903/la-gov-and-new-orleans-mayor-are-praised.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080903/la-gov-and-new-orleans-mayor-are-praised.htm Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:03:53 EDT This Labor Day finds workers in worse shape than they've been in years, according to a scorecard released Monday by Rutgers University. In its first national labor scorecard, the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations said more than 10 percent of Americans are unemployed, discouraged from seeking work or underemployed. That is a nearly 25-percent increase from one year earlier. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080901/report-card-workers-worse-off-on-pay-employment.htm Mon, 01 Sep 2008 07:08:38 EDT Be careful before signing up for a credit card with your spouse. It may cause a fight. A study released Wednesday by CreditCards.com found one out of five people who share a credit card say it has sparked a fight with the other account holder. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080827/study-sharing-credit-cards-causes-spats.htm Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:50:49 EDT A ring of cyberthieves has stolen tens of thousands of credit card numbers from Louisiana and Mississippi restaurants this year, leading to over $1 million in losses for the banks that issued them. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080818/feds-seek-to-nab-credit-card-thieves-in-la-miss.htm Mon, 18 Aug 2008 14:03:46 EDT Chalk up another remarkable feat for Michael Phelps: somehow making swimming trading cards popular. An autographed 2004 trading card of the record-shattering Olympian was trading for as much as $500 on Thursday, just two weeks after industry experts say the collectible could be easily had for $25. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/109258-beijing-olympics-swimming-mens-medleys.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080815/phelps-trading-card-skyrockets-in-value-to-500.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080815/phelps-trading-card-skyrockets-in-value-to-500.htm Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:51:09 EDT Chalk up another remarkable feat for Michael Phelps: somehow making swimming trading cards popular. An autographed 2004 trading card of the record-shattering Olympian was trading for as much as $500 on Thursday, just two weeks after industry experts say the collectible could be easily had for $25. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/108996-beijing-olympics-swimming-mens-medleys.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080814/phelps-trading-card-skyrockets-in-value-to-500.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080814/phelps-trading-card-skyrockets-in-value-to-500.htm Thu, 14 Aug 2008 23:44:26 EDT Americans still love their plastic, even if they don't trust the credit card companies dishing it out. A study released Wednesday by CreditCards.com found 58 percent of respondents said they "somewhat" or "strongly" agree with the statement "I don't trust credit card companies." http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080813/study-americans-love-hate-their-credit-cards.htm Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:48:16 EDT Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group Inc., say a former call center employee diverted some credit card payments from customers to a personal account. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080806/alaska-horizon-former-employee-diverted-payments.htm Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:19:17 EDT The Federal Reserve's proposed rules for credit card lenders could lead to the banking industry to lose at least $10.6 billion in interest annually, JPMorgan Chase & Co. said in a letter to regulators, citing a study. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080805/jpmorgan-credit-card-rules-could-mean-big-losses.htm Tue, 05 Aug 2008 16:50:57 EDT The chairman of the Senate's investigations subcommittee said Monday he supports the Federal Reserve's proposed restrictions on credit card practices, but that the rules don't go far enough. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080805/sen-levin-to-fed-more-credit-card-rules-needed.htm Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:33:34 EDT The chairman of the Senate's investigations subcommittee said Monday he supports the Federal Reserve's proposed restrictions on credit card practices, but that the rules don't go far enough. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080804/sen-levin-to-fed-more-credit-card-rules-needed.htm Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:48:45 EDT Alaska leads all states with the highest median credit card debt of $3,384, according to a study released Wednesday. New Hampshire came in second with a median of $2,109 in debt followed by Connecticut with $2,094, according to the study by Americans for Fairness in Lending. The study was based on 2006 year-end information from TransUnion, one of the nation's credit bureaus. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080730/alaska-leads-states-in-highest-credit-card-debt.htm Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:06:53 EDT The Senate Commerce Committee on Wednesday postponed a hearing on deceptive and fraudulent practices in the prepaid calling card market following the indictment of the panel's top Republican, Ted Stevens of Alaska. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080730/senate-hearing-to-examine-calling-card-practices.htm Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:42:34 EDT