For years, baffled consumers looked to Visa, MasterCard, and American Express for answers when mysterious charges from "shadowy companies" began appearing on their credit card statements.
Even though all three card companies have rules designed to protect users from unauthorized charges as well as to weed out problem-plagued merchants, thousands of people appear to have complained to their card companies for years about three post-transaction marketing companies: Webloyalty, Vertrue, and Affinion. Perhaps as many as 30 million people were affected, according to a government report.
The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation launched an investigation last May after learning of the thousands of consumer complaints from online shoppers. As a result of the investigation, lawmakers have concluded that the three marketing firms employed deceptive practices in order to fool consumers into signing up to loyalty programs and paying monthly fees. Now, the commerce committee wants Visa, MasterCard, and American Express to explain how all this went on for years under their noses.
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