Three out of four American citizens have at least one credit card. Each card operates in a credit card system where a financial institution loans the card holder money for purchases. A unique credit card number identifies each individual account on the credit card network and the magnetic strip stores personal and account information. Scanners verify the authenticity of a card as well as if there is sufficient credit to make the purchase. All of the account and personal information linked to each card is stored on large networked databases. These trillion dollar databases are the frequent target of businesses and individuals for both legal and illegal means. On the legal side, you receive junk email. On the illegal side, your credit identity is stolen.

The first credit cards to reach America arrived in the early twentieth century by way of the Illuminati Order and their pitch to congress to establish a "Federal Reserve" and a credit system of money. The Federal Reserve is no more federal than Federal Express. It was a lucrative pitch by Illuminati members and private bankers to make a ton of money by establishing a Federal Reserve and then starting a credit system. To learn more about this Google "illuminati federal reserve" without the quotes.

Under this new system of credit, the first credit cards were called retail cards and were issued by merchants to boost their own sales.

The modern day "universal card" appeared after World War II with the Diner's Club. In 1958 a second universal card was created called American Express. Both cards were labeled as entertainment cards and required card holders to settle all charges at the end of the month. In 1959 Bank of America came out with the first "bank card" where the debt carried from month to month and accrued interest. Bank of America called this card BankAmericard and it was renamed in the 1970s to Visa. Chicago bankers came out with MasterCharge in 1968 and it was renamed in the 1970s to MasterCard.

The "Credit Card Nation" makes invasion of privacy possible. Both legal and illegal invasions became possible due to the fact that bankers keep huge databases that track everything you do with your credit card.

A buyer obtains a good or service in exchange for a promise to pay at a later date. Trust forms the foundation of our Credit Card Nation. Bankers manage trust to reduce risk by quantifying a borrower's willingness and ability to repay: credit score. Bankers must collect all the information they can for an accurate risk analysis.

The 1970 Fair Credit Reporting Act curtailed the use of credit reports and allowed consumers to view their credit reports and to correct any errors. But pre screening, affiliate sharing, and sale of transaction date to profile consumers escaped regulation until the late 1990s. The widespread exchange of personal information contributed to junk mail and telemarketing which many regard as an invasion of privacy.

The 2003 Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act, has given consumer a little more control over how the data on their personal spending habits is used. "Opt-out provisions" allow consumers to restrict the sale of personal information by bankers and credit bureaus. But bankers are not going to allow this to happen easily. Consumers are sent a mini-booklet with pages and pages of too small print in an ominous looking booklet that most just throw in the trash. Who has time to spend hours reading a headache causing booklet after a long day at the office? Very few consumers know their rights or how to "opt-out". A better protection would be to use an "Opt-in provision" in which a consumer would have to sign a form to allow their information disclosed else it is illegal. If it was an opt-in law, you would see the bankers sending out very small sales letters in an eye pleasing format, probably with a coupon or check as a lure to opt-in.

Not only is privacy a problem in our Credit Card Nation, but identity fraud as well. Every few months, criminal organizations are able to purchase personal information from credit bureaus, bankers, and information brokers. An example of this is when Charters Pacific Bank in Los Angles sold over 4.5 million credit card numbers that were then illegally billed. Databases are also hacked by criminal organizations. A recent example is when ChoicePoint was hacked and the private information of an estimated 150,000 consumers was stolen. The group Privacy Rights Clearing House estimated that 120 such hacks of consumer databases occurs every year.

Our Credit Card Nation allows other forms of scam to take place as well. With the heavy reliance on junk mail, and consumers throwing junk mail in the trash, dumpster diving for sensitive information has become a multi-million dollar yearly scam. Police have started arresting dumpster divers who drive around in vans collecting personal information from trash cans in order to run scams. One such group was arrested in Clovis California when a routine stop revealed hundreds of personal records in the back of the van. A subsequent search of the person's home revealed check printing software with micro-toner printers and more personal account numbers, names, and social security numbers.

In the United States, a person is not considered to own their personal information thus it can be stored in databases and resold by anyone. This leaves the private citizen responsible for navigating
the dangerous privacy hazard sea.

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