etween talks with ATM criminals, skiing in the Green Mountains, spring break in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and job fairs in the Windy City, the payment processing industry's trade associations are busy with new initiatives and upcoming events.

National and multinational associations

www.atmia.com

In the ongoing battle against crime, ATMIA, in conjunction with the Global ATM Security Alliance (GASA), is providing members with a look into the mind of a criminal ... an ATM criminal.

ATMIA published recent research by a leading United Kingdom criminologist, the University of Leicester's Professor Martin Gill, and his team of researchers at the Perpetuity Research & Consultancy International Ltd.

The study, "ATM Crime: Offenders' Perspectives," focuses on insights from six ATM criminals who admitted to committing more than 1,000 offenses combined.

And as part of its campaign for corporate governance initiatives, ATMIA also published "A Concise International Glossary of Corporate Governance Terms" as a companion booklet to its "Corporate Governance Manual for the ATM Industry" and the training workbook "An Introduction to Corporate Governance."

GASA launched an international Fraud Alert Noticeboard, which is part of Cognito, its online ATM crime data management system ( http://196.14.52.70/atmia/index.html).

"Fraud is a moving target, which migrates rapidly in multiple directions, so the financial services industry needs a tool to distribute global alerts regarding emerging threats to enable proactive steps to be taken," said Lana Harmelink, ATMIA International Director of Operations. "This system could save the industry millions of dollars a year."

The Noticeboard describes the nature of an identified threat and then rates its risk level accordingly:

• High: Threat is significant, widespread and demands immediate attention
• Medium: Threat is hard to gauge but demands attention
• Low: Threat is small and does not demand urgent attention.

At press time, the seventh annual ATMIA Conference East (held Feb. 15 - 17 in Orlando, Fla.) was drawing to a close. Look for highlights in The Green Sheet's next Trade Association News article.

ATMIA is the only international, independent forum for the ATM industry. For more information, e-mail Harmelink at lana@mail.atmia.com .

www.electran.org

April, which TS Eliot called "the cruelest month," need not be so cruel if you plan to attend ETA's Annual Meeting & Expo, the industry's largest event that draws several thousand attendees. The conference will take place April 18 - 20 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

A preconference event, Compliance Day, is scheduled for April 18, from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. ETA has called this "the year's most comprehensive forum on compliance" and "a must-attend event for sponsored banks, ISOs, processors and third party service providers."

Representatives from Visa U.S.A., MasterCard International, American Express Co. and Discover Financial Services will address critical compliance issues facing electronic payment professionals: data security, sponsorship, registration, due diligence and chargebacks. Other preconference events include six different ETA University classes, a golf tournament, and a three-hour Super Session Track titled Payments Security, Mystery Solved.

The two days following the opening reception will offer presentations on topics such as identity theft, disaster recovery plans, background checks, recruiting, ISO success stories, interchange, contactless payments and a look at the future of payments.

The opening and closing keynote speakers will be Visa U.S.A. President John Coghlan and CNN's Lou Dobbs, respectively. For more information, visit ETA's Web site or call 800-695-5509.

www.naopp.com

On Jan. 1, Ken Hancock took over as NAOPP President, succeeding Kathy Harper.

"The board of directors would like to express its thanks to Kathy Harper for her service to NAOPP last year," the board wrote in the January 2006 edition of its electronic newsletter. "Her tireless efforts along with her enthusiasm kept our association going through some tedious processes.

Hancock began his term by posting a letter on GS Online's MLS Forum. The letter responded to a number of questions concerning NAOPP's direction as an organization and status on various initiatives for members, including health insurance (see "Letter from NAOPP's new President," The Green Sheet, Feb. 13, 2006, issue 06:02:01).

He said that NAOPP's 2006 goals are to continue to add member benefits and improve communication; develop a continuing education program and test it by year-end; and strengthen its committees.

"Our priorities continue to be education of the [merchant level salesperson] MLS and growing our membership," said Vicki M. Daughdrill, NAOPP Executive Director. "In 2005, our membership grew 38%, which is fantastic."

At the Northeast Acquirers' Association meeting at the end of January, NAOPP provided an educational program on Check 21 and check imaging. The program consisted of a panel of industry professionals, which included Mike Ponder of Integrity Payment Systems; Chris Brundage of Global eTelecom Inc.; and John Arato of MagTek Inc.

NAOPP is also planning a program in conjunction with the upcoming Southeast Acquirers' Association meeting in March. As more details become available, NAOPP will publish them on its Web site and in its newsletter.

NAOPP is a nonprofit organization working to bridge the gap between MLSs and other segments of the payment processing industry. For more information, visit NAOPP's Web site or e-mail naopp@netdoor.com .

Regional associations

www.midwestacquirers.com

MWAA's fourth annual conference will take place at the Palmer House in Chicago, July 19 - 21. The agenda has several new features, including a technology-in-bankcard theme for the general session, a merchant bankcard industry job fair and a two-track Field Guide seminar.

The job fair will highlight employment opportunities in sales, support and operations. Representatives from leading acquirers and ISOs will be present, discussing their programs, earnings and benefits.

The Field Guide seminar, an event independent of MWAA, will offer two parallel tracks:

• Track 1: "Success Factors in Bankcard Sales - A Guide to Greater Earnings Today"
• Track 2: "Grow Your ISO (and Sell It for Millions!)."

Finally, MWAA plans to recognize an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the industry with its Lifetime Achievement award. This year MWAA will also add a new distinction for MLSs, a Sales Hall of Fame.

MWAA is working on improvements to its Web site, which will be unveiled in late March, in time for registration for the fourth annual meeting. Vendor space is limited. For more information, visit MWAA's Web site or e-mail Mark Dunn at mark@fieldguideforisos.com .

www.northeastacquirers.com

NEAA just had its ninth annual winter meeting, held Jan. 31 - Feb. 2 at the Grand Summit Resort in Mt. Snow, Vt. All told, more than 425 people (including ISOs, acquirers and vendors) attended. This is nearly 10 times the number present at NEAA's very first winter event, according to Jacques Breton, NEAA Treasurer.

The kick-off activity featured a charity poker tournament, sponsored by United Bank Card Inc. The money raised, $4,500, was donated to the Goodwill Rescue Mission for the Homeless in the Newark, N.J./New York area.

The following day found the seminar room packed for presentations on assorted topics, ranging from contactless and wireless payments, to ATM sales opportunities and data security. Wrapping up the event, attendees had a chance to brave the elements, skiing and snowmobiling on freshly fallen snow.

About half the attendees were vendors. The exhibit hall was packed, with little room for future growth of exhibitor space. Breton suggested that any decision to expand likely would prompt the group to change venues.

Any move won't happen next year, however, as NEAA has booked the Grand Summit for its 10th annual winter meeting, scheduled for Jan. 30 - Feb. 1, 2007.

Meanwhile, NEAA is finalizing plans for its 2006 summer event, to be held June 13 - 15 in Parsippany, N.J. For more information, visit NEAA's Web site, or e-mail Jacques Breton at jbreton@gcfinc.com .

www.southeastacquirers.com

Hopefully you've made reservations to attend SEAA's fifth annual meeting because it's just around the corner. The event will take place March 20 - 22 at the Bonaventure Resort & Golden Door Spa near Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (If you were planning to exhibit and have not made reservations, you're out of luck. SEAA has reached its capacity of 70 vendors with tabletops.)

A separate Field Guide for ISOs seminar will be offered by Mark Dunn on March 20 from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., followed by SEAA's opening reception and a charity poker tournament. Other event attractions include a hospitality center, a cyber cafe and a massage center. On March 21, from 9:00 a.m. to noon, there will be breakout training sessions with terminal vendors, followed by educational presentations.

For more information, visit SEAA's Web site or e-mail Audrey Blackmon at ablackmon@posportal.com .

www.westernstatesacquirers.com

WSAA is busy planning its third annual meeting, still many months away. "The tentative dates are either October 25 and 26 or November 8 and 9," said Sherry Friedrichsen, WSAA President. "We are currently looking for a hotel property in the San Francisco area."

If you missed the second annual meeting in November 2005 in La Jolla, Calif., presentations from that event are still available on WSAA's Web site at www.westernstatesacquirers.com/html/news.html .

For more information, visit WSAA's Web site, or e-mail Steve Eazell at stevee@westernstatesacquirers.com .