MasterCard Extends Zero-Liability Policy to ATM Transactions

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images MasterCard (MA), the world's second-largest debit and credit card company, said it was extending its zero-liability policy for cardholders in the United States to include all PIN-based and ATM transactions. The move follows several data breaches at U.S. companies including one at Target (TGT) late last year involving the theft of about 40 million credit and debit card records. "The move by MasterCard just enhances the sense of security for people at a time when it has been shaken up significantly in recent times," said Gil Luria, an analyst with Wedbush Securities. Zero-liability protection currently covers card transactions that require a customer's signature but doesn't apply if an account holder's personal identification number, or PIN, was used for unauthorized transactions. The new policy will take effect in October. Zero-liability protection means the account holder won't be held responsible for unauthorized transactions. Larger rival Visa's (V) zero-liability policy doesn't apply to PIN-based and ATM transactions, according to information available on the company's website. "The changes that we're making in cardholder protection combined with our efforts to move the U.S. payments industry to EMV chip technology will help deliver safer shopping experiences to consumers," said Chris McWilton, president of North American markets for MasterCard. The two companies have urged banks and retailers to meet an October 2015 deadline for the adoption of "EMV" chip technology that would make it safer to pay with plastic. "This all comes back to the adoption of EMV. Of all the cards that are breached at ATMs, a majority of them are non-EMV cards. This is just another way for the company to impress upon the importance of quickly adopting EMV cards," said Philip Philliou, managing partner of Philliou Partners, a firm that helps banks and retailers select payment processors. U.S. cards issued by MasterCard will also carry identity theft resolution assistance, which helps cancel missing cards, alert credit reporting agencies and conduct searches to detect if stolen confidential data appears online, MasterCard said Wednesday. The financial impact from the extension of the coverage is expected to be minimal for MasterCard, according to Luria. MasterCard shares were down less than 1% to $76.98 in afternoon trading Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange. Last week, eBay (EBAY) became the latest victim of a cyberattack that compromised customer data and the company asked 145 million users of its online commerce platform to change their passwords.

Unscrupulous Debt Collectors Are Seniors' Top Financial Peeve

Image Source/Getty Images When it comes to financial shenanigans, the top targets of senior citizens' complaints in this country are debt collectors, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reported Wednesday. Seniors commonly report being hounded and threatened by debt collectors -- and about half of those reported incidents involved debts they didn't incur. From July 2013 through September of this year, the agency received 25,000 complaints from older consumers, and more than a third were about debt collection. "It is increasingly common for older Americans to carry debts into their retirement years, and consumers living on fixed incomes often struggle to pay off these debts," CFPB Director Richard Cordray said. "Older Americans deserve to be treated with the respect they have earned." Debt collection is a huge industry in the U.S. Nearly 5,000 companies collect debts, and about 30 million consumers have debt that is subject to collection, the CFPB said. Making Them Pay Federal law prescribes what debt collectors can -- and cannot -- do. Collectors can only call during certain hours, and they can't just say whatever they feel like to coerce you into paying. Harassing consumers, chasing after family members of those in debt (or family members of deceased debtors) and threatening arrest or garnishment of federal benefits all cross the line. The Federal Trade Commission offers a guide to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If a debt collector violates the terms of the Act, you can sue them and collect up to $1,000. In addition, class-action lawsuits are regularly filed against collectors who are accused of violating the law. Such lawsuits can result in up to $500,000 in penalties. While such lawsuits -- even when won by the plaintiffs -- won't result in the erasing of people's debts, they can help ease some of the burden, and hold unscrupulous collectors responsible for their actions. If you're dealing with a debt collector whom you believe has crossed the line, you can report them to your state Attorney General's office, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. More from Mitch Lipka
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When Our Son Left the Nest, We Knew We Needed a New Will

OJO Images Ltd/Alamy I didn't have much of a motivational problem when it came to creating my first will, shortly after my son was born. But now, more than 22 years later, he's a college graduate with full-time job in his field of study, and can support himself. (Yay!) But despite the change in our circumstances, we were dragging our feet on updating our estate plan to fit them. "I think people just have trouble accepting their own mortality," said Ken Cutler, the Princeton, New Jersey, attorney helping to update my will. And the only purpose of a will is to deal with issues involving your death. Flashback to 22 Years Ago Let's start with the will my wife and I prepared after the birth of our son. We were both working and had retirement plans, some savings and life insurance -- but we were far from wealthy. Obviously, if I passed away, everything would go to my wife: all of the assets, all of the responsibilities. But the hard decisions were about control: Who would be the guardian to raise our little boy in the event that we both passed away (which is not quite as unlikely as it sounds, because of car accidents and the like), and who would handle the money we had left for him. "A lot of times people go in to do a will thinking it's about, "Who will get my property?" But it's a lot more complicated than that," said Cutler. "You don't come in thinking about having to decide between a sister or a brother-in-law, or who's going be the guardian." After weighing our choices, we decided that my wife's younger brother was the best fit. He had two young boys of his own. Our Situation Is Different Today Back to today. We first met with Cutler about two years ago, when our son was about to turn 21. He told us what was involved in crafting a new plan: selecting trustees and executors, dealing with estate taxes and maybe setting up a trust account. We waffled, interviewed other attorneys, and put the task back on the to-do list, where it sat. College graduation motivated us to try again. My wife and I drew up power of attorney documents and health care directives that appoint each other to handle those responsibilities. Our son is the back-up. Cutler laid out the new issues we'd have to consider, such as the possibility that we'll have a daughter-in-law one day, and maybe even grandchildren. These future family members ought to be accounted for well before we even know who they are. "You want to plan for and avoid a situation in a young marriage, and prevent the in-law from receiving your money" if the marriage dissolves. And even though we are fortunate to have a son who is sensible and wise beyond his years, we wouldn't want him to suddenly find himself in possession of an inheritance in a form that could easily be blown. So, at Cutler's suggestion, we have established terms in our wills for a trustee who would give him access to the money at three stages over the next few decades, if we're not here to spend it ourselves.