Alleged debit card fraudster Florin Necula was confronted with some incriminating evidence which was tough to swallow, but he found a way… by literally swallowing it!

The alleged events actually occurred back in January, but they’re just coming to light now, thanks to a recently unsealed search warrant affidavit.

New York City resident Florin Necula and his accomplices are accused of running a card skimming operation involving local ATMs. Allegedly, they rigged the ATMs with credit card readers; when a customer inserted their card, the numbers would be recorded. Necula was apprehended by Secret Service and awaiting integration at their district office. In view was evidence which Necula reportedly had on him at the time of arrest; a USB jump drive. According to court documents, he “grabbed” the jump drive and swallowed it!

After four days, the “evidence” had still not passed through his digestive tract, so doctors at a local hospital “removed the flash drive because they were concerned that Necula would be injured” if they didn’t. It’s unclear whether or not the contents of the drive are still intact since the drive was extracted from the suspect.

But I don’t know what’s dumber… the suspect swallowing the drive or that his defense attorney reportedly said “they didn’t have a right to take it from him” and might file a claim to suppress the evidence.

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TERRE HAUTE — When Adrie started college, she didn’t have a credit card and didn’t particularly want one. Eventually, however, an on-campus solicitor for “Major Card” got her to sign up for a card membership. …

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February 22nd… the day George Washington was born, the day Florida became a state, the day Dolly the cloned sheep was debuted to the world – and equally important – the day Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act went into full effect

If you’re a regular reader of Credit Card Forum, then you already know we have talked about this extensively over the past few months, but here’s a quick summary of the highlights:

Interest Rates
From this day forward it will be much more difficult for credit card companies to raise interest rates on existing balances. This includes promotional interest rates.

Payments
Now your payments will be applied towards the balances with higher APRs first. Grace periods must be at least 21 days. Due dates can no longer fall on days the mail is not delivered

College Credit Cards
The days of free pizzas and T-shirts for college students that fill out a credit card application are over. If they’re under the age of 21, they either need to have a co-signer or a verifiable job to pay the bill themselves.

To find out all the details, you can use the search function on the right side of this page to see our previous posts.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney first introduced her bill for reform three years ago. Here’s a recent interview where she discussed how shocking it is that they were able to pass the reform without loopholes…

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The CARD Act goes into effect today, February 22, 2010. This Act was established to protect credit card consumers and is monumental because it will change the way credit card companies do business. It entails the most significant changes ever to be made in credit card history.

What will the Act entail?

1.  There will be new limits on rate increases.
2. It will prohibit credit card companies from ’surprising’ consumers.
3. Credit card lenders will have to do a better job informing the consumer regarding interest rate increases and fee increases.
4. It will make it much more difficult for consumers under the age of 21 to qualify for a credit card.
5. Interest rates will not be allowed to undergo an increase until after the account has been open for at least 12 months.
6. Credit card companies will not be allowed to charge “over limit” fees unless the consumer specifically allows over limit charges.
7. Monthly credit card statements will have to undergo a face-lift. Each statement must contain detailed information, including a detailed pay-off plan. This plan will show you how long it will take to pay off the balance on your credit card by only making minimum payments.
8. If the interest rate is increased after one year, the new interest rate will only affect new charges. It will not affect the previous balance at all.

Congress is hopeful that the Act will place more power in the hands of consumers. Of course, credit card companies will still have access to a wealth of power. Lenders will seek other avenues for the amount of lost revenue provoked by the Act.

However, the Act is not a “saving grace” for credit card holders. Some credit card holders believe that all of their credit card problems will be solved by the bill. Many people need to realize that if you have gotten out of the habit of reading everything from your credit card company, the Act isn’t going to do much for you. You will be required to change your old habits and start reading every correspondence between you and your lender.

The CARD Act of 2009 is here to help the millions of credit card holders around the country. But, it isn’t here to save you from all of your credit card woes. Learn as much as you can and be sure to read everything that your credit card company sends you.

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New small business credit cards? Here’s why you’ll want to think twice from this point forward…

• Credit Card Reform Not Applicable
  The fact that we finally got credit card reform in this country is a major win for consumers. Although most banks have already became compliant over the past few months, next Monday the reform will officially go into effect. While this is great news for your personal cards, it’s bad news for old and new small business credit cards. Why? Because they aren’t included in the reform. That means they can still pull the ol’ interest rate bate ‘n switch on a small business credit card.
  
  
• Small Businesses Are Categorized As Riskier
  Thanks to all the economic turmoil over the past couple years, new small businesses are being scrutinized more than ever when it comes to giving them credit. If you are a sole proprietor or recently formed an LLC or corporation, it’s considered to be an especially risky proposition. However there’s good reason for creditors being skittish. Take Advanta… they were the second largest issuer of small business credit cards in the United States. However in 2009, a staggering 1 out of every 5 accounts were in default, now the company is bankrupt. All of the other small business creditors suffered brutal losses on these accounts too.

• Lower Credit Limits Than Personal Credit Cards
  Due to the extreme risk associated with small businesses, even if you can get approved, the odds are that the credit limit will be dismal. This is especially the case for new small business credit card applicants, since new companies are considered to be an even higher risk.

• Interest Rates Are Much Higher Than Before
  In the past when times were good, some small business credit cards actually had interest rates that were lower than what was available on most personal cards. Advanta (as discussed above) was notorious for doing this, however now that they’re bankrupt, that train has left the station. I have several American Express cards – one of them a small business card I’ve had several years – and even with my perfect credit and zero debt, my interest rate more than doubled on it! So it doesn’t matter how good your credit is… we are all being affected.

• You Will Need To Personally Guarantee The Credit
  Unless you have an established corporation or business entity that has successfully been using credit for years, you will have to make a personal guarantee to get a new small business credit card. That means it will be under your Social Security number – just like a personal card is. However unlike a personal card, since it’s still technically a “business” credit card so you will not be protected by the recent credit card reform.

Are there any alternatives to new small business credit cards?
For now your best bet is to probably use a personal card. If the purchases are for your new small business, you can still write them off. What I decided to do was open a personal card and use it exclusively for my business, that way I don’t have to sort the transactions.

For this purpose, right now I highly recommend the AmEx Blue Sky card. Sure, I do advertise AmEx cards on this site, but take a look for yourself at this card and you’ll see why it’s an honest recommendation. Myself and others have had great luck with getting high credit limits and the rewards can be beat with it. There’s no annual fee either. For a special promo signup offer, check out my personal review of the American Express Blue Sky.

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