MENTOR, Ohio, March 2, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CardinalCommerce, the worldwide leading enabler of payment brands, thanks Visa, MasterCard and JCB for its efforts in developing and respectively introducing to market the Verified by Visa, MasterCard® SecureCode™ and J/Secure™ authenticated payment programs.
Year after year, the Internet has become a more popular venue for convenient shopping. During this time, the threat of online fraud, identity theft, and the corresponding losses which affect consumers, retailers and banks, has kept pace.
Visa, MasterCard, and JCB have taken the lead, made the investment, and put their reputations at stake to help make electronic commerce safer for all of us. These three organizations initiated programs architected to eliminate Internet fraud, the 3-D Secure™ protocol(1), commonly known as Verified by Visa, MasterCard® SecureCode™ and J/Secure™.
Imagine the daunting task of creating authentication systems that service hundreds of millions of consumers, millions of merchants, and tens of thousands of banks, around the globe; that's just what Visa, MasterCard, and JCB have accomplished with their respective programs. The initiatives were designed to ease the constituents into adopting authentication, while maintaining the ability to evolve as better authentication technology is continually released into market.
Visa, MasterCard, and JCB have built the foundation and infrastructure for online and mobile authentication. The 3-D Secure-based protocols contemplate authentication as being technology-neutral, rather than dependent on singular end-user interface technology-centric solutions, such as usernames/passwords, dynamic numbers, or biometrics.
There are several very clever and insightful aspects to the programs that no other systems have heretofore put into practice.
First, the programs allow uneven adoption by the constituents; consumers, retailers, and banks. Each participant can adopt the protocols in a gradual and orderly fashion. The protocols do not require mass adoption by any party for them to work.
There are also incentives for each group to adopt the protocols. Merchants are incented to participate because authenticated transactions are designed to be less expensive and shift the risk of loss due to fraud to the issuing banks, irrespective of cardholder or bank adoption.(2)
Consumers benefit from authentication because their cards are protected. When a consumer registers for the respective programs with his or her usernames/passwords, the added credentials thwart fraudsters because, on sites employing the protocols, that card won't be authorized independently of the credentials.
Banks can also protect themselves and their cardholders by participating in the authentication programs. Banks that activate the service for all cards add a layer of security universally, even if these cards aren't presently used online. The cardholders' banks are responsible for the implementation of each protocol which provides flexibility and time with regard to adoption. Since banks control their own implementations, they will choose varying levels of security, similar to online banking.
Second, the protocols are extensible and can continue to be expanded to accommodate new and better technologies. An important aspect of security in the protocols is that a private secured session is arranged between the consumer and their issuing bank. The protocols cause the banks to report a positive, negative, or qualified result to the merchant prior to accepting the sale. The risk merchants or their processing agents take when collecting or storing cardholder credentials is eliminated by the nature of the programs which pass these reporting results instead of passing sensitive credential data.
Usernames/passwords are a good start because the concept is familiar to consumers and it is inexpensive; however, authentication needs to continually improve. With intended foresight, the protocols are designed to evolve to support individual bank authentication systems and technology. The protocols can support the complexity of individual bank systems and their specific preference toward authentication technology or user interface. The notion that the industry rely on a singular authentication technology can be put to rest since the protocols allow authentication to be enabled with existing technology and can accommodate new technologies as they emerge.
Third, the protocols add multiple levels of security as banks add their own respective authentication systems and technologies. This individuality or customization by banks adds a security factor. It reduces the impact of stolen cards because the bank-specific authentication technology is not transferable to other banks' cards. This is especially effective at combating large data breaches that have historically targeted merchants and their respective transaction processors. Potential thieves would be heavily burdened to sort the cards by authentication methodology, match credentials based on that method, and so on. These complexities serve as a significant deterrent.
New payment brands or methods are expanding on the Internet: PayPal™, Amazon Payments™, Google™ Checkout, eBillMe™, Bill Me Later® and others all use and rely on authentication. They, too, should be lauded. These brands understand that making remote commerce safe is important to everyone.
CardinalCommerce would like to thank Visa, MasterCard and JCB for making the investment, and each putting their weight behind programs that makes sense today and for the future.
(1) The name 3-D Secure represents the three domains involved: the Acquirer (merchant), the Issuer (cardholder's bank), and the interoperability between the participants. Each association's branded programs incorporate various data elements and requirements customizing the 3-D Secure protocol for their respective brands.
(2) The incentives for merchant participation vary by payment brand.
About CardinalCommerce
CardinalCommerce Corporation is the global leader in enabling authenticated payments, secure transactions, and alternative payment brands for both eCommerce and mobile commerce.
Cardinal Centinel®* enables payment brands such as Verified by Visa, MasterCard® SecureCode™, Amazon Payments™, Bill Me Later®, ClickandBuy®, Cred-Ex®, Ebates™, eBillme™, eLayaway™, Google™ Checkout, Green Dot® MoneyPak®, Mazooma™, Moneta®, MyECheck, NACHA® Secure Vault Payments (SVP), NYCE SafeDebit ®, OneTouch Online Purchasing™, paysafecard, PayPal™, RevolutionCard™, SafetyPay™, TeleCheck®, Ukash™, and more to a network of thousands of merchants and merchant service providers.
Our mobile commerce platform, Cardinal MAX™, makes it simple for retailers to sell and market products through the mobile channel. Cardinal's proprietary and easily deployable technology provides consumers, merchants, credit/debit card issuers, and processors the ability to conduct authenticated Internet, wireless and mobile transactions safely and securely.
Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, with facilities in the United States, Europe, and Africa, Cardinal services a worldwide Customer base.
For more information, visit www.cardinalcommerce.com
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