With the rising trend of electronic payments (in which more cash transactions are now processed through credit card swipes at restaurants and retail stores), hackers are seeking new avenues to obtain your data. In particular, they target Point-of-Sale (PoS) systems connected to the internet that accept credit card payments through apps on smartphones – the recent high-profile case involving criminal carding rings breaking into multiple Subway locations as evidence that consumers face real risks from these rogue hackers.

Recent research demonstrates how easy it is for criminals to gain access to your online banking passwords and bank account funds through malicious software that modifies web pages you visit, enabling cyber-criminals to steal both passwords and money from them. This technique, known as Man-in-the-browser, has proven especially successful at airports, hotels, and remote networks with unreliable WiFi services; specifically airports and hotels where the security systems detect only limited invalid payment requests while different websites ask for different card data fields allowing guesses on each field individually like jigsaw puzzle pieces allowing criminals access.