The $1.4 billion Baxter Credit Union has joined the echelons of 60 peers that service more than $1 billion in mortgage loans, even though it has only been in the mortgage business for eight years.

The 28-year-old hacker who prosecutors have alleged was behind many of the largest card security breaches since 2007 is reportedly close to finalizing a plea bargain in at least some parts of the case.

Rene Palomino, the lawyer for accused computer hacker Albert Gonzalez, argued in a recent interview with ComputerWorld magazine that Gonzalez is more addicted to computers than he is to crime.

A study by FICO, the company responsible for the widely used FICO credit scores, revealed that consumers' credit scores have been only minimally impacted by the recent, widespread cut in consumer credit lines.

Credit cards continued to be solid assets for credit unions in the second quarter of 2009 and about three credit unions sold their credit card portfolios to agent bank issuers, according to an analysis of NCUA data.

Prosecuting Albert Gonzalez, the young and brilliant computer hacker that authorities have alleged was behind many of the major card breaches in the last two years, is bringing up a number of challenges for prosecuting these sort of cases.

Heartland Payment Systems' CEO, Robert Carr, revealed last week that the company has begun to make its end-to-end encryption devices available to its merchant clients.

A credit union in New York and another in Ohio have joined Credit Union 24. Their addition takes the credit union-owned ATM and EFT network to 455 credit unions,