Making payments and PINs

Reality: The law allows retailers to surcharge for different types of payment which you often see for credit cards in certain retail sectors. Surcharging has nothing to do with the credit card companies. The card industry would like to see action to stop retailers from excessive surcharging where the amount of the surcharge bears no relation to the cost of the retailer for accepting a card payment.

Reality: A recurring transaction on a credit or debit card is not the same as a Direct Debit. An RT is an arrangement between a cardholder and a merchant to make regular transactions against an account and may be completely invisible to the card company. RTs, and the arrangements in place between the cardholder and the merchant, are often indistinguishable from regular ad hoc transactions. The card industry is currently working to improve the way that RTs work, including making them easier to cancel.

Direct Debits are part of a formal scheme which includes a guarantee of payment and a formal set of rules. Acceptors of Direct Debits (originators) have to abide by a strict set of rules in setting up, processing and closing arrangements.

Reality: Through the efforts of the card industry on a global basis the purchase of child sex abuse images using payment cards has largely disappeared (though this is no reason to be complacent). These days, law enforcement agencies believe the problem to be more about per-to-peer networks exchanging such images, and other forms of payment or exchange values.

Reality: This is nonsense. There is no such thing as a Golden PIN.

Reality: This is nonsense. No such system exists.