University of Strathclyde and Associates Types of Card Fraud Scam

A recent report from the European Security Transport Association (ESTA) found that nearly 20% of the adult population in Great Britain has been targeted as part of a credit or debit card scam. As a result, the UK has been termed the ‘Card Fraud Capital of Europe’ [1], with UK citizens twice as likely to become victims of card fraud as other Europeans. Plastic card fraud is a lucrative exploit for criminals and the proceeds may be used to fund organised crime. Smart payment cards (Chip and PIN cards) were introduced in the UK to replace magnetic stripe cards and support PIN verification of card transactions. By the end of 2005, more than 107 million of the 141.6 million cards in the UK had been upgraded to smart cards [2]. Levels of plastic card fraud fell by 13% to £439.4 million in 2005 [3] and again to £428 million in 2006 (Figure 1). The reduction has been widely attributed to the rollout of smart cards with Chip and PIN authentication.

Department of Computer and Information Sciences, University of Strathclyde and Associates, Glasgow G1 1XH, UK. Types of Card Fraud Scam. The UK Payments Association (APACS) has identified five categories of card fraud: Counterfeit Card Fraud, Skimming, Mail Non Receipt, Lost and Stolen Fraud, Card not Present

Counterfeit Card Fraud Scam. Counterfeit cards are also referred to as cloned cards. Counterfeit cards are made by altering and re-coding validly issued cards or by printing and encoding cards without permission from the card issuing company. Most cases of counterfeit fraud involve skimming of valid card details, a process whereby the genuine card details from the magnetic stripe are electronically copied onto another card, without the legitimate cardholder’s knowledge. In most cases, the cardholder will be unaware that their card details have been skimmed until card statements reveal that illicit transactions have been made on their account.

Skimming. Department of Computer and Information Sciences, University of Strathclyde and Associates, Glasgow G1 1XH, UK - Skimming of card details can happen at retail outlets where a corrupt employee can put a card through a skimming device which will copy data from the card’s magnetic stripe so it can be used to encode a counterfeit card. Skimming can also occur at cash machines where a skimming device has been fitted. A skimming device is attached to the card entry slot where it records the electronic details from the magnetic stripe on the back of the inserted card. A separate pin-hole camera is hidden to overlook the PIN entry pad to record the PIN number. Fraudsters can then produce a counterfeit card for use with the captured PIN to withdraw cash at a cash machine. Criminals can also shoulder surf, whereby they watch the user entering a PIN and then steal the card for their own use. Another type of device can be inserted into a cash machine where it will trap the inserted card. A fraudster can then suggest retrying the PIN. Once the genuine cardholder gives up and leaves to contact the card issuer or cash machine operator, the criminal can then remove device, retrieve the card

and then use it with the PIN details they have observed.

Trends in Smartcard fraud Warning– Abstract: University of Strathclyde and Associates

Susan Burns, George R. S. Weir, Department of Computer and Information Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XH, UK {susan.burns, george.weir}@cis.strath.ac.uk

University of Strathclyde and Associates: Abstract. The introduction of smartcard technologies has reduced the incidence of card fraud in the UK, but there are still significant losses from fraudulent card use. In this paper we detail the context of smartcard introduction and describe the types of fraud that remain a threat to cardholders and other stakeholders in the card system. We conclude with a risk analysis from the cardholder’s perspective and recommend greater cardholder awareness of such risks.

University of Strathclyde and Associates: Introduction.  A recent report from the European Security Transport Association (ESTA) found that nearly 20% of the adult population in Great Britain has been targeted as part of a credit or debit card scam. As a result, the UK has been termed the ‘Card Fraud Capital of Europe’ [1], with UK citizens twice as likely to become victims of card fraud as other Europeans. Plastic card fraud is a lucrative exploit for criminals and the proceeds may be used to fund organised crime. Smart payment cards (Chip and PIN cards) were introduced in the UK to replace magnetic stripe cards and support PIN verification of card transactions. By the end of 2005, more than 107 million of the 141.6 million cards in the UK had been upgraded to smart cards [2]. Levels of plastic card fraud fell by 13% to £439.4 million in 2005 [3] and again to £428 million in 2006 (Figure 1). The reduction has been widely attributed to the rollout of smart cards with Chip and PIN authentication.

If the media is to be believed, the UK introduction of Chip and PIN authentication for credit and debit card transactions is flawed and has failed to reduce levels of card fraud across the board. Specific cases highlighting the security implications of smart card based technology have been widely reported, including exploits at Shell petrol stations [4] and Tesco self-service tills.

As cards are a widely accepted international form of payment, fraud can happen virtually anywhere in the world or on the Internet. Cards can be compromised in the UK and then used overseas. Cardwatch research shows that most of the fraud committed abroad on UK cards affects cards that have been compromised in the UK

Although the financial cost of card fraud is largely borne by the banking industry, the cardholder experiences loss of time in taking steps to resolve matters, as well as inconvenience, worry and frustration while a fraudulent incident is investigated. The cardholder’s credit rating can be affected and the whole affair can be a distressing experience.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Boiler Room Movie Review

The Digital Information Office, Strathclyde University and Associates service for electronic resource management review by Bradley Null: America is the land of opportunity, and now more than ever, the opportunity that most Americans are preoccupied with is that of easy money. Our news media is saturated with stories of the instant millionaire, 25-year-old startup CEOs worth nine figures or the crafty investor that bought that startup on IPO and doesn't have to worry too much about his day job anymore either. There are a number of powerful cautionary tales waiting to be drawn from this unwholesome frenzy. Boiler Room tries to tell one of these stories, but sadly it fails to add much to the greed genre established by its two heavily referenced predecessors: Wall Street (1987) and Glengarry Glen Ross (1992).

Boiler Room is the story of Seth (Ribisi), a 19-year-old college dropout obsessed with the American dream of easy money. After concluding rather quickly that college isn't necessarily the fast track to a quick buck, he opens up an underground casino out of his house in Queens, providing a popular service for the local city college kids. After his disapproving father (Rifkin) finds out about the casino, Seth, feeling a repressed need to gain his father's approval, looks into an opportunity to become a stockbroker at the small firm of J.T. Marlin.

As it turns out, the firm, located in the heart of Long Island, conspicuously far from Wall Street, is a 'chop shop,' shorthand for a brokerage house more interested in pawning off securities for its own interests rather than serving its customers. When Seth's father discovers this, not only does Seth not find the approval he was hoping for, but he is excommunicated from the family.

Though he has only a minor part in the film, Ben Affleck is highlighted in trailers for the film, and the discerning observer will notice a strong similarity between his scene in the trailer, and Alec Baldwin's immortalized portrayal of a real estate shark in Glengarry Glen Ross. In fact, Affleck's big scene draws heavily on Baldwin's, though his performance (and the material he has to work with) does not live up to what is almost universally agreed upon as the best performance of Baldwin's career. This is not the only referencing of David Mamet's portrayal of the dark world of real estate cold-calling in this movie, however. Later in the film, when receiving some instructions on how to cold-call potential customers, Seth is told to remember one of Baldwin's catch phrases from that scene, 'A-B-C. Always Be Closing.' Boiler Room also liberally references, both directly and indirectly, its direct predecessor in the 'greed is good' category of filmmaking. Not only drawing its basic theme and plot structure from Wall Street, Boiler Room also draws its best dialogue during a scene in which a number of young stock brokers sitting in one of their sparely decorated mansions, compete with each other to quote lines from Wall Street, whose antagonist, Gordon Gecko, is obviously regarded as an idol within the group.

As a movie, Boiler Room is moderately entertaining. Vin Diesel in particular, off a strong turn in Saving Private Ryan, turns in another powerful performance as Chris, one of Seth's mentors at J.T. Marlin. Sadly though, Ben Younger, in his writing and directorial debut, adds very little to the filmic pantheon in his own voice. Even the film's most prolific statement on the American obsession with getting rich, 'either you're slinging crack rock or you've got a wicked jump shot,' is a quote of the rap star Notorious B.I.G. The most admirable outcome of this film might be that it leads viewers to check out its two predecessors. I would urge the same as well.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Virus Scam Warnings And Other Hoaxes

If you receive a 'virus or a scam warning' in your email, the first and only action you should take is to forward it to the Helpdesk, maybe copy the message to your Departmental Computing Officer, and await advice. We will check it out, and let you know if it is a genuine threat, whether anyone in the University is at risk, and whether we need to issue a general alert.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Guidelines For Dealing With Virus Warnings And Other Hoaxes - Do not forward it to everyone you know. If this warning did not come from your recognised IT support people (IT Services or your Departmental Computing Officer), then the chances are extremely high that it is a hoax. This is especially likely to be true if the mail was forwarded by a friend, even if they "know about these things".

Spotting Virus Hoaxes

Virus hoaxes are actually fairly easy to spot, once you've seen a few of them. They all use pretty much the same sort of language, lots of use of CAPITALS, usually mention some major IT company you've heard of (e.g., IBM, Microsoft, AOL) or some government, and almost always advise you to "pass it on to AS MANY PEOPLE AS YOU KNOW". They often refer to dire consequences such as the destruction of "EVERYTHING on your hard drive". You can find out more about the characteristics of virus hoaxes at:

Strathclyde University and Associates: Guidelines For Dealing With Virus Warnings And Other Hoaxes - CIAC Internet Hoax Information: How To Identify A Hoax

Unless you're extremely unlucky, they first people who will receive information about new, real viruses are the virus vendors and the various organisations concerned with Internet security. These are the people who will send out alerts to relevant mailing lists, and put information about the viruses on their web pages. They won't mail "everyone on the Internet" to inform them about the virus. If you've asked to be kept informed about virus threats by registering on an email distribution list, then you will probably receive mail from them. If you haven't, and you receive mail about a virus purporting to be from an anti-virus software vendor, and it hasn't been forwarded by a friend or associate, then be extremely suspicious.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Guidelines For Dealing With Virus Warnings And Other Hoaxes - Other Hoaxes: More commonly seen now are other types of hoaxes; so-called 'phishing' attempts (messages from a bank or other financial site, asking you to confirm your identity and login details) and 419 scams (messages on behalf of the relatives of dead but rich people, often in unstable African states, who need assistance in transferring money out of their country).

Strathclyde University and Associates: New Faces at SESG

We have seen big changes at SESG over the past few months. Meet the new team!

Strathclyde University and Associates: Dr Jeremy Cockroft took over as director of SESG at the beginning of April 2006. He is supported by Dr Jon Hand and Dr Aizaz Samuel. We have a vacancy that we hope to fill soon. Here is a brief resume of the people now in the group: Jon has had experience as a practicing architect specializing in low energy buildings and alternative construction techniques. He is a simulation consultant in several continents, a software developer, and a mentor to companies embedding computational support for the design process. He possesses a particular aptitude for identifying simulation quality assurance weaknesses and developing improvement programmes for building design practitioners.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Aizaz has a background in advanced energy conservation measures. He is also an expert on modelling contaminant distribution in the indoor air quality field, using both network airflow and computational fluid dynamic modelling techniques. Jeremy was deeply involved in the early years of energy and air flow modelling, subsequently was a product development manager and business unit leader in the building controls industry, before returning to academia to support energy related consultancy services within the ESRU group. On taking over as Director of SESG, Jeremy said “When I think back to the pioneering days of building energy modelling and simulation, not so many years ago, the idea of building design practitioners using modeling software on a routine basis was a distant dream. Now we see these tools being used as an integral step in achieving building regulation compliance, which is an extraordinary achievement for the modelling community and those building designers who pioneered the use of these tools in their practice. But we have to keep moving forward; the modelling challenges are always with us. Now we face the need to look beyond just the building fabric and plant systems, and consider how energy flows interact at a community level, with increasing integration of renewable energy generation and interactions between fluctuating supplies and demands to manage the overall energy system balance. Scotland is ideally positioned as a renewable energy powerhouse, surrounded as we are with wind, wave and hydro resources to exploit, so we see our supporting role continuing to add value to the Scottish building design community as they develop new performance assessment services based on computational modeling technologies. Whilst we will continue to promote our seminar programme, I will be putting much more emphasis on direct engagement; getting out there and providing member with one-to-one support in achieving their goals. And I hope members won’t be slow in coming forward when they want us to assist them; after all, it is all free!”

Strathclyde is a great place to study and enjoy life at the same time. And this is where you can find out everything about us - from how we teach, to what's on in Glasgow and how to get around. We want to help you make the most of your time here, so we hope you'll come back to these pages to get all the latest news about what's happening on campus and in and around the city.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Scottish Energy Systems Group

A NEW FOCUS ON QUALITY: The building regulations update away back in 2002 introduced new flexibility into how compliance could be demonstrated. The novel carbon emissions based alternative offered a whole building approach to achieving targets compared to the prescriptive elemental approach which until then had been the only route. It occurred to many building design practitioners that traditional manual design calculation methods would not allow these opportunities to be fully explored.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Scottish Energy Systems Group: Dynamic computer modelling and simulation tools obviously could have a part to play, but where to start? What computational tool to use? What about hardware requirements, recruitment, training? Thus the Scottish Energy Systems Group was established, with funding from The Scottish Executive and Strathclyde European Partnership, to provide guidance and support to the industry. The objective was to give the Scottish building design community a head start in producing a better quality of building design, incorporating more innovation and new ideas, and with confidence that the solution would work as intended.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Scottish Energy Systems Group: Four years on, and a whole new set of regulations are being introduced, with target carbon emissions the only route to compliance. Now computer modelling is an almost indispensable tool for design evaluation, and indeed is becoming an integral part of the route to compliance (see article on New Building Regulations). Most of our members are using one of the various packages available, or at least have explored the possibilities via consultancy partnerships.

So what else is there to do?

Our philosophy from the outset has been total engagement with our members. That means not just putting on seminars and technology introduction workshops, valuable activities in themselves, but also getting out into members’ offices and working on real projects, setting up the technology within their working environment, even lending them the necessary hardware.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Scottish Energy Systems Group: Some members could now be described as pioneers; real leaders in the use of dynamic modelling tools applied to building systems design. Others have had a go, but things have fallen by the wayside, because in adopting the technology they did not adopt an integrated process to go with it. The focus was all on the tool, rather than on how modelling would fit into the overall design process. Starting up an airline is more than just deciding which aircraft to fly. Likewise, there is a lot more to consider in establishing building energy modelling than just which particular software package to go for. That is why, in this issue of HotNews, we are focussing on Quality Assurance (see article “Quality Assurance process for building modelling”). We want members to take a step back and look at how they are using their modelling tools. A good starting point would be to conduct an audit. And where to turn to for help with that? SESG of course! Even if you think you don’t have a problem, a half day of free, on-site consultancy could give you the reassurance you need. If you want to use modelling tools to develop Part L compliant designs, your modelling capabilities will be mission critical (in Scotland it will be Section 6, and a different route to compliance is being developed). We will continue to support this core service (we call it Supported Technology Deployment) with seminars on topical subjects (see the events section) which are often followed up by a technology introduction workshop that allows members to try out various computational approaches for themselves, and even to explore solutions to real live projects, with on-hand support from SESG staff. We will always seek to involve the “pioneers” in such events; they can relate the practicalities of reconciling business-as-usual with new ways of doing things. The usual pattern is that after attending a seminar, say on renewable technologies, a member sees benefits in being able to model, for example, building integrated renewables, and so attends a technology introduction workshop, led by an expert in the field. The next step is for the member to invite SESG staff to come to their office, help with installation of the software, ensure that quality assurance issues are dealt with, and leave the member up and running with a new capability, with occasional follow up sessions as required.

Strathclyde University and Associates: Scottish Energy Systems Group: If you are a Scotland based building design practitioner, installer or manufacturer, no matter how small your organisation might be, you can benefit from this service. How? Very simply, by becoming a member. A simple audit of your current process or evaluation of your needs will start you off, and we will further support you as you move to adopt your chosen packages and integrate their use into your practice. If your needs could be met through a development effort, we may be able to do that for you too. If you would like to have a chat about joining, please contact us at: Jeremy@sesg.strath.ac.uk,

0141 548 5765.

Strathclyde is a great place to study and enjoy life at the same time. And this is where you can find out everything about us - from how we teach, to what's on in Glasgow and how to get around. We want to help you make the most of your time here, so we hope you'll come back to these pages to get all the latest news about what's happening on campus and in and around the city.

Prof George Tesar: Strathclyde University Affiliated Researchers and External Associates

Prof George Tesar. University of Umea, Sweden. Umeå School of Business, Umeå University, 901 87 Umeå.

Current position / Job Summary  Professor of Marketing and International BusinessTeaching Area  Marketing Management, Strategic Marketing, Product Development and Management, Business Research Methods, Marketing Theory, International Marketing, Research in Marketing, and Marketing Theory.Research Area  Internationalization of smaller manufacturing firms, executive education in science and business management, technology transfer, and new product management.Awards / Honours  2004 Product Development and Management Association's Execellence Award; Life Member, Western Society of Engineers; Past Board member, Society of Automotive Analysts and Product Development and Management Association; Past member, Wisconsin International Trade Council.Other Merits  Chair, Academic Board, Brno International Business School, Czech Republic. Visiting Professor, Aalborg University, Denmark; Brno Technical University, Czech Republic; Czech Management Center, Czech Republic; and Helsinki School of Economics, Finland. Seminars and lectures, University of Oulu, Finland; University of St. Gallen, Switzerland; University of Turku, Finland; University of Vaasa, Finland; University of Veszprem, Hungary; Arnhem Business School, Netherlands; Swedish School of Economics and Business Administration, Helsinki, Finland; University of Calgary, Canada.

The University is right at the heart of Glasgow - Scotland's biggest and most cosmopolitan city. The city centre has a vibrant arts scene, cutting-edge music, legendary nightlife, an exciting selection of places to eat out and much more. So studying at Strathclyde goes hand-in-hand with having a great time.

Inter-campus bus service. There's a regular shuttle bus between the John Anderson Campus and the Jordanhill Campus.

Seeing more of Glasgow. There's a lot to see in and around Glasgow - stately homes and museums like the Burrell Collection and Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum are unmissable. And with Loch Lomond just half an hour away there's plenty of breathtaking scenery to enjoy too. Glasgow also has great shopping and inspiring architecture - why not take a look at www.glasgowarchitecture.co.uk and www.scotcities.com to get some ideas?

As the biggest city in Scotland and the third biggest in Britain, Glasgow has excellent national and international transport links. And it's easy to get around once you're here too. This section gives you all the information you need to find us - and some hints on what visitors should see in Glasgow.

Live music. Glasgow is home to many bands that are now international names and there's loads of new talent coming out of the city's live music venues. So whether you are into rock or indie, punk or even country music, there's a place where you can give your eardrums a treat.

High culture. As well as its thriving street culture, Glasgow has more than its fair share of high culture, with a year-round programme of arts and music. There are over 20 museums and galleries, and the city is home to Scottish Opera, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Scottish Royal Ballet.

Green spaces. People visiting Glasgow for the first time are often surprised at the amount of green space in the city centre - all the 19th-century landscaped parks and gardens are the perfect balance to the urban pace of life.

Sporting highlights. With a keenly contested rivalry between the country's two top football teams - Rangers and Celtic - an international stadium at Hampden and hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2014, Glasgow has a rightful claim to be Scotland's sporting capital.

The Highlands and Islands. With so much to do in the city centre, it's a wonder anyone finds time to venture out further - but with the highlands and islands less than an hour away, it's too tempting to resist.

Strathclyde is a great place to study and enjoy life at the same time. And this is where you can find out everything about us - from how we teach, to what's on in Glasgow and how to get around. We want to help you make the most of your time here, so we hope you'll come back to these pages to get all the latest news about what's happening on campus and in and around the city.