Protecting plastic: credit card fraud in historical perspective

Vanatta, S. H. (2016) Protecting plastic: credit card fraud in historical perspective. In: Bátiz-Lazo, B. and Efthymiou, L. (eds.) The Book of Payments: Historical and Contemporary Views on the Cashless Society. Palgrave Macmillan: London, pp. 167-176. ISBN 9781137602305 (doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-60231-2_16)

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Abstract

This chapter offers a glimpse at the early history of credit card fraud in the USA. It argues that fraud became prevalent when travel and bank card issuers disembedded cards from their original department store context. It then provides three interrelated frameworks for understanding the challenges fraud posed to issuers—as a network problem, a cultural problem, and a legal problem. Though travel and bank card firms eventually overcame these challenges, card fraud continued (and continues) to plague the industry, suggesting fraud may be endemic to payment card systems.

Item Type:Book Sections
Status:Published
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Vanatta, Dr Sean
Authors: Vanatta, S. H.
Subjects:D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D839 Post-war History, 1945 on
E History America > E151 United States (General)
H Social Sciences > HG Finance
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences
Publisher:Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN:9781137602305
Published Online:06 December 2016

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