The following article was contributed by Chris Bucolo, senior vice president of market strategy at Sysnet: You’d be forgiven for thinking that most cybercrime happens to big organizations. That’s because you rarely see SMBs making headlines when they become victims, compared to their larger counterparts.

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The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported on March 28, 2021, that 180,646,465 U.S. citizens have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Several states have eased restrictions on indoor dining and public gatherings. Despite these positive indicators, a new study by Chargeback Gurus, titled The State of Chargebacks During the Covid-19 Pandemic, warned of persistent pandemic-related threats.

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Despite ecommerce growth throughout the pandemic, the U.S. market remains robust and nowhere near saturation, according to a new study by RetailX and ACI Worldwide. Industry analysts explored highlights from the USA 2020 Ecommerce Country Report in a March 2021 webinar, discussing changes in consumer behavior and their preferred shopping channels.

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The COVID-19 pandemic may have forced some to press the pause button on business as usual, but not fraudsters. A pair of reports out of TransUnion reveals a significant uptick in digital fraud perpetrated against businesses, globally, as well as a surge in pandemic-related fraud schemes targeting consumers.

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KERV Interactive, a technology company specializing in IR-driven interactive video, launched a new product designed to facilitate in-video checkouts. The AI-driven solution enables viewers to browse and pay for items without ever leaving a video. The ecommerce and video integration supports all payment methods, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal and major card brands, according to Marika Roque, chief operations officer at KERV Interactive.

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Phased deployments of 5G-enabled devices and networks are fueling hope of better processing speeds, according to new studies by Accenture and HighSpeedInternet.com. As 5G connectivity improves in the United States and Europe, manufacturing, automotive, healthcare and agriculture will benefit as 5G creates new jobs in these sectors, Accenture analysts suggested.

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n the United States today there is no comprehensive federal law governing consumer data privacy. Some members of Congress want to change that. Last week, Rep. Suzan Delbene, D-Wash., introduced legislation to create a federal consumer data privacy standard, which would supersede the current patchwork of state data privacy laws and give the Federal Trade Commission rulemaking and enforcement powers.

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When Senator Dick Durbin, D-Ill., speaks, the card brands listen. That's the inference from reports that Visa and Mastercard are delaying planned hikes in the interchange rates until April 2022.

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Worldline disclosed March 9, 2021, that its Telium TETRA platform is first to gain Mastercard's Ecos (Enhanced Contactless) certification, specifications designed to improve, protect and standardize contactless commerce. Launched in January 2021, Ecos delivers "quantum-resistant" contactless payment schemes, stated Ajay Bhalla, president, cyber and intelligence solutions at Mastercard.

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As fintechs celebrated International Women's Day and Women's History Month, findexable launched a new global platform on March 9, 2021, designed to measure global diversity and inclusion initiatives. The Fintech Diversity Radar is gathering real-time data to demonstrate that diverse workforces are better at meeting customer needs and outperform companies with homogeneous staffing, according to Denise Gee, founder and managing director at findexable.

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Visa and Mastercard are planning major adjustments to interchange rates come April 1, and Senator Richard Durbin, D-Ill., whose name is practically synonymous with federal regulation of debit card interchange, is crying foul. Any planned increases in interchange rates could foil the economic recovery, Sen. Durbin has said.

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On March 8, 2021, fintechs around the world celebrated International Women's Day, a global event honoring women's social, economic, cultural and political achievements. This year's theme, "choose to challenge," resonated with fintechs, widely known for challenging the status quo and helping those who have been traditionally bypassed by financial service providers.

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In honor of International Women's Day coming up March 8, 2021, Paysafe kicked off the month with a virtual roundtable with female leaders that explored gender equality in the modern workplace. Given that the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found women accounted for most job losses in December 2020, with net losses of about 156,000 jobs, while men lost only about 16,000, the topic was ripe for examination.

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The Electronic Transactions Association launched ETA CONNECTS on Feb. 25, 2021, a digital conference series featuring multiple perspectives from across the payments value chain. Billed as a must-attend event for executives looking to stay ahead of the curve, the series opened with "Future of Payments, Reshaping the Payments Landscape Through Continued Innovation."

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Payments technology firm NMI divulged on Feb. 23, 2021, that it had acquired USAePay for an undisclosed sum, creating a new merchant acquiring powerhouse. Based on 2020 tallies, the newly combined company handled in excess of 1.5 billion payment transactions valued at over $100 billion, NMI stated.

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