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When the Internet started growing in popularity, barriers between knowledge and communication were broken. The Internet also brought around the existence of shops - e-shops or virtual shops - that only existed on the Internet. You could go to these shops by using an online credit card. Once the payment was approved, the products were delivered to you. This was convenience at its best.

Online credit card use is becoming more and more popular as more virtual shops appear every day online. The possibility of taking credit card payments online has given a new meaning to shopping. You can now shop not only from the comfort of your home and pajamas, but you also can get discounts. There is no longer any need to worry about the weather, traffic jams, or any other thing that would deter you from shopping. Now, you just have to go to a virtual shop, select the item you want, and use their online credit card payment provider to pay. Before you know it, your order comes to your door.

Accepting online credit card payments through a processing facility also means that it's become easier for someone to start a business online. Anyone can do this, but they don't necessarily have to have credentials or even be a legitimate business. You should be cautious about using businesses online that are unfamiliar to you or your friends.

Taking online payments does have its challenges, however. One of the downfalls of using credit cards online is the possibility of credit card fraud. This fraud can happen in two different ways. The first involves the company on whose website you are making the payment. The company could be fraudulent by taking the payment but not delivering the products. The company also could use the details that you provide about your credit card for fraudulent activities.

Another type of fraud happens when criminals use different types of software and devices to steal the details of credit card payments as you put them in the website's payment form. This software typically is known as spyware and the criminals installing it are spies. Spyware works by capturing your typing and taking pictures of whatever you do online. The spyware then passes the information on to the criminal. There are different programs that you can use to counteract the spyware and protect your computer and your information.

Although using credit cards online can be more convenient for everyone, it doesn't come without faults and challenges. You must use caution when you are making credit card payments online. You shouldn't access your bank accounts or make online payments from any unsecured network, for example. You also should be wary of making such payments while shopping in Internet cafes.

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Following on from an investigation launched in October 2003, eight major credit card companies were told in July 05 by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) that the charges they levy for late payments were "disproportionately high", and that charges need to be adjusted to better reflect the costs of managing late payment. Throughout the investigation, the credit card firms continued to maintain that the late payment charges they imposed were fair.

The legality of these charges are being questioned by a Scottish law firm, supported by the Scottish Citizens Advice, who are encouraging consumers to challenge the right of banks to charge such high penalty fees. With current high street credit card typical APRs ranging from 5.9% to 29.9% this is up to 25.4% points above the present 4.5% Bank of England base rate, and banks cutting the interest rates on current and savings accounts, many consumers see the levels of the bank charges as an additional means of revenue generation by the banks through excessive penalization of consumers beyond the actual costs involved.

"The law says if someone breaches their contract, for example you go over your overdraft without permission, the bank is only entitled to recover its actual loss," Mike Dailly, Principal Solicitor at the Govan Law Centre told BBC Money Box, "If you get an automated letter from your bank for going over your limit, that costs about 50p. So why should someone get a ?36 letter for that transaction?".

In a previous press release, the OFT stated that it, ?considers that, in a consumer contract, a default charge is likely to be disproportionately high if it is more than a genuine pre-estimate of the damages that the card issuer would win in court if it sued the cardholder for breach of contract.?

A representative of the British Banker's Association told the BBC that the banks were not charging customers more than the actual cost, citing that the charges were to cover additional costs incurred due to a need for human intervention, ?to extract the item from the day's work, to research the customer's recent credit profile, and then a managerial decision as to whether to return the unpaid item.?

The Glasgow based Law firm states that, ?The legality of bank charges has yet to be ruled on by a senior UK court but these will not be enforced if they are found to be 'penalty' or 'unfair' charges.? Until a final ruling is made by the courts, they have drawn up a letter citing both Scottish and English case law along with the regulations which apply throughout the UK to help customers get their charges refunded.

Disclaimer:

All information contained in this article, is for general information purposes only and should not be construed as advice under the Financial Services Act 1986. You are strongly advised to take appropriate professional and legal advice before entering into any binding contracts.

Useful resources:

Credit card rate comparisons ( http://www.moneynet.co.uk/credit-card/index.shtml )

Current and savings account interest rate cuts further information ( http://news.ft.com/cms/s/faed1a82-8e9c-11da-b752-0000779e2340.html )

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Both Landon Mcgehee & Mr Hanna are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Landon Mcgehee has sinced written about articles on various topics from Finances, Credit Cards and Credit Card Offers. Learn more of what Landon McGehee has to share over at . Knowledge you can use for everyday living on the subject of. Landon Mcgehee's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.

Mr Hanna has sinced written about articles on various topics from Spa, Finances and Credit Cards. Michael is a keen writer, and internet marketer living in Scotland: Contact details: E-mail: samqam@googlemail.com Phone: 0131 561 2251 Michael's Website: . Mr Hanna's top article generates over 12100 views. to your Favourites.

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