Monday, December 03, 2007

Lethargic Reporting Part II

The Times of India does not publish the news. They prefer being the cause of it. December 1, 2007. Article on the front page, by Kavita Kukday. The reason for the furore?

"Credit card info on bhel wrapper"

The article went on to elaborately explain how a media professional found the complete details of a credit card on a bhel wrapper. Kavita also went on to claim that the details were for an American Express credit card. This was followed by the usual information, there was a name printed but withheld. Both the 16 digit card number and the 3 digit batch number were present.

No mistakes there right? Beeep! Wrong Answer! Classic case of lethargy in reporting. AmEx cards have 15 digits not 16. Their batch number is 4 digits not 3. I reiterate. How difficult is it to use Google? I really think that they have gone to enough lengths to make their interface as user friendly as possible.

If a Google search is not the problem, then what is? If you insist that the credit card number was 16 digits, then the card could not have been AmEx. If you claim that the card was AmEx and there were 16 digits noted on the paper maybe you should consider a course on spotting fraudulent credit cards.

A few must reads for Kavita:

An article with an almost exhaustive list of credit cards and ISO 7812 numbering scheme in Wikipedia

A similar article as above, without the list but explained in complete layman's terms. Fireworks Zone
I like the way the article starts. Perfect for people getting acquainted with credit cards.

I understand mistakes can happen. I make them too. I still subscribe to TOI.

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Unknown said...

Well what can you tell about that reporter Ms Kukday. A Biggest scam in reporting...!

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