Is the end of the credit card business at hand?
In the continuing cyber war, the websites of the international credit card MasterCard and the Swedish prosecution authority are among the latest to be taken offline in the escalating technological battle over WikiLeaks, web censorship and perceived political pressure.
Co-ordinated attacks by online activists who support the site and its founder Julian Assange – who is in UK custody accused of raping two Swedish women – have seen the websites of the alleged victims’ Swedish lawyer disabled, while commercial and political targets have also been subject to attack by a loose coalition of global hackers.
The Swedish prosecution authority has confirmed its website was attacked last night and this morning. MasterCard was partially paralysed today in revenge for the payment network’s decision to cease taking donations to WikiLeaks.
In an attack referred to as Operation Payback, a group of online activists calling themselves Anonymous appear to have orchestrated a DDoS (distributed denial of service) attack on the financial site, bringing its service to a halt.
DataCell, a small Icelandic company that facilitates transfers made by credit cards including Visa and MasterCard, says it will take up “immediate legal actions” and warned that the powerful “duopoly” of Visa and MasterCard could spell “the end of the credit card business worldwide”.
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I think one thing that people don’t really think about is how all of us now have to pay slightly more for goods and services because of credit cards. Credit card companies charge businesses a tiny amount to use their service, which business pass on to consumers. However, they don’t just pass it on to credit card using consumers. People who pay cash pay the exact same price for things as people who use cards, even though it’s only the people with the cards who have transactions that incur these tiny fees. It’s a scam everywhere except the gas station, where in many places it does actually cost less if you pay cash.
Good idea Jess but I wonder if I can give them my account number and have them wipe my account clean first?
I wish they would get rid of credit cards, or at least get better regulation, so that consumers are not paying high amounts for interest on the balances they carry. No need for high interest rates to the consumer, when CC companies are borrowing from each other and the fed, at low to zero interest rates. Hey, I’m a dreamer, what can I say.
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Maria Pagin, Holte Ender. Holte Ender said: RT @madmike1 Is the end of the credit card business at hand? http://bit.ly/i6qPQh […]
Shoot them all.