Online Retail Fraud on the Decline, but Vigilance Still Needed

Forty-eight percent of online merchants report that online chargebacks amount to about 0.1 percent of sales, which matches the generally accepted rate in brick-and-mortar stores. A recent survey by the Merchant Risk Council revealed this finding and other data revealed below:
* Use of address verification systems by online merchants has increased from 70 percent to 83 percent since 2001.
* The effectiveness of address verification systems on online retail sites has dropped from 70 percent to 25 percent.
* Card verification codes’ use increased from 38 percent to 73 percent since 2001.
* Card verification codes decreased in effectiveness from 49 percent to 31 percent in that same time period.

Source: 5th Annual Merchant Risk Council Survey, http://www.merchantriskcouncil.org.