[2] FEATURE/Credit Card Fraud Costs E-tailers Millions, Angers Consumers; MerchantOnline.com CEO Available to Discuss Issues Surrounding Online Fraud.

Business Editors/Technology Writers

FEATURE...

--(BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES)

1,000 complaints a week pour into the Internet Fraud Complaint Center, run jointly by the FBI and the Justice Department. That number is expected to reach 1,000 per day.

Neither consumers nor merchants are immune to online fraud.

For merchants, problems include:

-- Higher chargebacks: Internet transactions account for a significant number
of chargebacks for retailers. Chargebacks are credit card refunds from disputed
or fraudulent purchases. The number of Internet chargebacks is almost 20%
higher than conventional transactions, according to one estimate.

-- Loss of merchandise: When consumers claim that merchandise was never
received, not only do merchants lose the sale revenue, but they're usually out
of the merchandise, too.

For consumers, problems include:

-- Non-delivery of goods: Consumers send payments for online

merchandise online that either does not exist or is never shipped.

Either way, they lose their payment.

-- Credit card and identity theft: Credit card and personal

information can be tracked or compromised through one's

"electronic identity."

One solution to this problem is a device that allows consumers to swipe their credit card at home the same way a merchant does in the store - making the transaction "card present." The device, about the size of a computer mouse, plugs into the keyboard and encrypts credit card data before it enters the computer.

"Keeping the consumer's credit card and personal information off of the computer's hard drive both protects consumers and helps merchants by reducing transaction fees and chargebacks," says Tarek Kirschen, CEO of Merchantonline. He is available to discuss the issues surrounding online fraud.

About MerchantOnline.com

MerchantOnline.com (OTCBB:MRTO), based in Boca Raton, FL, is a developer and provider of secure real-time e-commerce transaction services for the business to business ("B2B"), business to consumer ("B2C"), and consumer to consumer ("C2C") markets. The company offers products and services to online merchants as an economical, easy-to-install service that allows merchants to accept and fill orders securely over the Internet. Its products include proprietary real-time credit card processing programs, a proprietary hardware device called PCPay(R), and a proprietary ATM/Debit network.

To arrange an interview with Mr. Kirschen, contact Elliott Frieder 212/213-7245 or Nancy Brenner 212/213-7103.