PayPal Plug-In: Single Use Debit Cards

Recently, I received word from PayPal that they’ve decided to discontinue the incredibly useful PayPal Plug-in.

As the final day approaches, PayPal doesn’t seem to be backing down from its impending termination. September 22, 2010 is officially the last day to use the tool.

It’s a sad day. This has been, by far, one of PayPal’s most valuable features.

What Are Single Use Debit Cards?

To anyone who makes online purchases, having the ability to generate a valid, disposable card number is a dream come true. If you’ve ever had a debit card number compromised — either because of bank error, security breaches, or just jerks who get lucky with their random card number software — you know how painful it is to clean up the process. You get to contact the issuing bank, cancel the card, go without usage of it for days or even weeks while they replace it, and deal with the whole issue of getting your money back from whomever may have successfully nabbed some.

What a mess!

It’s like “Identity Theft Lite.”

A couple of years ago, we went through a nasty streak of these problems at my house. On multiple issuing banks, we had several business and personal debit cards compromised. In some cases, there were fraudulent charges (or in some cases, just authorizations). In other cases, we were informed by the bank that there was a breach of security and they recommended immediate replacement.

It’s not a fun situation. Especially when you have meticulous habits (as we do in my house) around using card numbers at reputable sites only, always verifying SSL status before punching a card number in, using firewalls when surfing at public hotspots, etc…

It seems that you can’t be too careful. And even when you’re doing your best, you can get stung through no fault of your own.

So, imagine my delight when I discovered that PayPal was offering a free piece of software that permitted me to generate a brand new card number on demand. There was no physical card attached at all. It was merely a valid card number, complete with its own expiration date (usually about 2 months from the date it was generated), valid CVV digits, and billed to the billing address on my PayPal account. And the best thing? It could only be used once.

So… about to make a purchase from an online retailer that wants to store your credit card information (for your convenience, of course!)? Just open the plug-in, login to PayPal with your password, and in a click or two and about as many seconds on the clock, you’d have a card number that would be approved right away for your purchase… but would forever be declined thereafter.

They even gave me an option of creating multiple use card numbers for recurring billing purposes. Need to be able to track charges from a certain retailer, vendor, or supplier? No problem. Just generate the a multiple-use card number for that vendor, and you’re in full control. You can cancel the number at any time to stop them from charging you… without having to go through the hassle of replacing your physical card and getting stuck without the ability to use it in the meantime.

Don’t have your wallet close by while you’re trying to check out of a website with a purchase? No problem. Just open up another browser window and crank out a valid card number on the spot.

I could go on and on. The usefulness of this fantastic service seemed to grow by the day.

In All Fairness…

The software itself left something to be desired. Originally, I installed the plug-in on my Firefox browser. Over time, as Firefox was updated, the plug-in didn’t get along with it so well. So… I ended up having to install it on the dreaded Internet Explorer. That was a pain… especially since I trust Internet Explorer as far as I can throw it. (Ever tried to throw a piece of software?)

But… despite the rather clunky user interface, and the annoying and odd fact that there was no way to get to your previously generated cards, receipts inbox or the other nifty features of this tool from the main PayPal website (the only way to open that part of their site was to use the plug-in… which took you to that magical part of the site), the tool was still nothing short of invaluable.

What To Do?

Honestly, I don’t know. I’m searching for “Virtual Debit Cards,” or “Secure Debit Card Generator,” or “Single Use Debit Cards,” or “Disposable Debit Card” online. Nothing so far seems to be a good match. I’ve found a number of complaints in the PayPal community forums where users like me are publicly lamenting the loss of this tool. There are some complaints from international users that they never had access to the tool to begin with (apparently it was only for US customers).

But nothing that looks like it could serve as a replacement for this valuable tool.

I can’t help but suspect that I’ll be using PayPal less and less. And I’ll probably be more inclined to move any balance in my PayPal account much more quickly into my main business checking account. I’m sure I’ll still use the PayPal debit card that I carry for my business… but probably less often.

Will that hurt PayPal? Probably not much. I’m certainly only one business owner… and I’m guessing that adoption of this tool wasn’t very widespread (otherwise they’d be more aggressively announcing alternative features). So… I’m sure they calculated the risk associated with cancelling the tool and decided it was worthwhile for whatever reason.

But I’ll be moving at least some of my PayPal business once I find a replacement solution.

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Rev. Jack C. Carroll
January 31, 1921 - January 26, 2010

Yesterday morning, my Grandfather, Rev. Jack C. Carroll, quietly slipped away. He was completely at peace, confident about his eternal future, and having lived a full and complete life. He was in no pain, and from what the folks who were caring for him said, he simply went to sleep.

But far more interesting and important than how his life ended are the many things that filled it. You see, “Pa-Po” (as my brother and the other grandchildren and I knew him) was a man who experienced much and loved much. And through everything, he was a passionately principled and devoted man who set a very high bar for what real manhood is all about.

Many knew him as the preacher who cared for and spoke into the lives of so many people across Oklahoma, Colorado and — long after “retirement” — Florida. Some knew him as the Pearl Harbor survivor who fought for the Freedoms that were so precious and valuable for him. As a U.S. Marine, he continued his service through the end of World War II, fighting for the all-important islands in the South Pacific that were so crucial to the outcome of the Japanese conflict.

I knew him as the fun, thoughtful, generous, and studious Grandfather who impacted my life in more ways than I can count. On visits to their home as a young boy, I watched the habit of morning prayer that he and my Grandmother (“Mow-Wow” — don’t ask me: my brother named them before I was born) engaged in every single day. They read the Scriptures together and prayed for us — their children, grandchildren, and later great-grandchildren — by name.

With Pa-Po, the Word of God and prayer were not merely the accoutrements of his profession. Of all that I received from him, the legacy of his authentic relationship with God is most significant and meaningful to me. I often think of him and I realize that so many of the blessings in my life today are the fruit of his decades-long, consistent daily walk. First ordained under the Christian & Missionary Alliance, he became a Southern Baptist minister and began pastoring in the 1940s. He moved his young family all over the great state of Oklahoma, pastoring churches in cities like Ada, Shawnee, and ultimately: Blackwell. It’s Blackwell that I appreciate so much because it was there that his daughter, Ann, met my father when they were 14.

From Oklahoma, he and Mow-Wow eventually relocated to Denver, Colorado, where they took up residence in Littleton. Some of my fondest memories from childhood are from visits to their house there, where Pa-Po and I laughed and played Uno® together on the porch. On Sundays, we always were in church, where I heard and watched him preach with passion and conviction — always struggling to help people and impact their lives for eternity.

In January, 1986, my parents and my brother and I made the trek from Houston to Denver to surprise Pa-Po as he “retired.” I remember many things from that trip — notably, that I was in the basement of their home watching TV when Dan Rather interrupted to announce the destruction of the Challenger — but what struck me most was the sheer number of people who expressed such genuine heartfelt gratitude to him for his career serving people. What an impact it had on me to see how he had poured his life out for others.

Of course, for him, “retirement” simply meant giving up his comfortable salary at a decent-sized church so he could continue pastoring smaller ones for nearly 2 more decades. Thankfully, in 1998 he and Mow-Wow moved to Bradenton, Florida where he began pastoring yet again. For him, fruitfulness in life was more important than leisure.

There is much to be said about Pa-Po, and I appreciate the opportunity to be a bit indulgent here as I talk about him. His wife, Erma, along with his 3 children — Ann Johnson, Steve Carroll, and Jane York — and their children and grandchildren all miss him sorely.

A funeral service celebrating the life of Jack C. Carroll will be held on Friday, January 29, 2010 at West Bradenton Baptist Church, 1305 43rd Street West, Bradenton, FL 34209. A public viewing will be held at 10am, with the service beginning at 11am. He will be interred at 2pm at Sarasota National Cemetary.

I miss you, Pa-Po.

Special thanks to Grant Jefferies for taking fabulous photos and generously releasing them to the family. Thanks also to Rachel York for Photoshop help.

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Now… I’ve heard the radio ads from the “big guys” promoting their websites… and I’ve also done some price comparison. And even though I wanted to handle the transaction online (as much as possible), there’s something reassuring about knowing that there’s a real agent on the other end of the website that you can get on the phone if you need to talk. My term life insurance is probably not the last thing I’ll need from an independent agent, so building a relationship (much like the old-school hometown insurance agent we all grew up knowing) seemed like a good idea. But I still wanted the convenience of instant online quotes and a transaction that didn’t eat up huge amounts of my time.

TermDog.com - the website I used

For all of those reasons, I chose to go with TermDog.com. Even though they’re not based here in Florida (HQ is in Naperville, IL), TermDog is licensed to sell insurance in a number of states. Mike Fry and his team have done an outstanding job of providing a very high level of service. Here’s what my experience was like.

1. I went to the TermDog site and played with the online quote generator. It’s easy to find, as they’ve stuck it on every page of the site. After playing with a few parameters, I found the approximate level of coverage I could buy and still fit my budget. In my case, I needed more than $500K worth of coverage, but wanted to spend less than $50/month.  Within just a couple of minutes, I had settled on a $750K 20-year policy and got the process started. (I liked the fact that even though I was giving the website enough information about me to generate a quote, I wasn’t asked for my real name or e-mail address until I was pretty sure I wanted to move forward.)
2. Within a day or so after submitting the quote, I heard back from Michael Fry. He needed to ask a few more questions, which only took a few minutes on the phone.
3. A few days later, a package arrived containing the life insurance app from the company that Mike had determined would probably be the best fit for me. It’s been quite a while since I bought life insurance, and I must say the length of the application surprised me. But after checking around a little bit, I’ve found out that that’s the new “normal.”
4. I actually dragged my feet getting the app filled out (did I mention I wanted to spend as little time on this process as possible?). Thankfully, Mike gave me a couple of gentle reminders. I truly don’t like being harassed, and Mike kept me from forgetting about it without being even remotely annoying.
5. I had the option of scanning and e-mailing the app, faxing it, or mailing it. Ultimately I opted to drop it in the mail because it feels more likely to keep my information secure. Arguable, I realize. But I needed to send a check for the first month’s premium as well as a voided one for the automatic draft, so it made sense just to do it all at once.
6. After reviewing my app, Mike did me a favor. There were a couple of characteristics about my situation that didn’t match up perfectly with the original company he had in mind, and he’d also had a little bit of difficulty with that particular company. So… he and his team completed a new application for me using the information I’d provided on the first one and they e-mailed it to me already ready to sign. Nice huh?
7. From there, I faxed in the signature pages from the newly completed app (just for speed).
8. In no time, I was getting phone calls from a local company here in town who handled the health screenings. They were easy to deal with and even had a location 5 minutes from my house. They took blood, weighed, measured, poked and prodded… all the usual stuff. I was fully prepared for the experience because TermDog had e-mailed me a list of what to expect. A very nice touch.
9. Within a few days, I received a call that my policy was on its way… and the premium was lower! Evidently my health screening results put me in a different category on the actuarial tables. And that saved me 20%. When was the last time somebody quoted you something and then sold it to you for less?
10. I had to sign the policy and drop a check in the mail (made out to the new company). Nothing to it. I’m now insured.

The  Bottom Line

The whole experience was virtually ideal. I’m very busy and didn’t have time to visit an agent’s office and spend a lot of time on the phone. With TermDog’s online quoting, I was able to make my own decisions about the level of coverage without being pressured by an agent. Once I had decided to move forward, they handled the whole process very professionally and expediently. I not only highly recommend TermDog, but I plan to use them for future insurance needs.

For the record, I’m not being compensated or otherwise rewarded for telling you about this. I realize some bloggers get paid to express opinions. That’s not the case here. I’m absolutely a TermDog fan. You will be too!

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And for all you consultants and other providers of professional services who’ve been in this situation–you know who you are–I know you enjoyed this as much as I did.

H/T: Joe Brachle and Phil Cooke

And by the way, if anyone from Scofield Editorial is reading this… I’m sure that you understand what I mean when I say that any consultant could’ve created a video of this quality…

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Photo Credit: Jayme Leita - BigStockPhoto

Setting political viewpoints and economics aside, today I am rejoicing.

Why?

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve thought long and hard about the issues faced by African-Americans in our culture. As a Caucasian male, I won’t pretend to have any real comprehension of what this is truly like. I spent most of my early childhood years in a suburb of Houston where racism was completely unknown — at least to me.

However, I’ll never forget the year I spent in Montgomery, Alabama. Many of my friends were African-Americans, and while I was completely bewildered by the culture shock I experienced, I did my best to try to develop an understanding for why — even as recently as the 1980s — racial tensions were unbelievably high.

That year changed my perspective forever. The bigotry that existed left an indelible impression on me. And it seemed clear to me that a lot of healing needed to occur — for all races involved — in order for there to be real progress.

And that’s why, today, as I sit and watch the pre-inaugural proceedings, something in me wells up with joy. I feel it in the air… I am thrilled for what the election and now the inauguration of Barack Obama  means to my African-American brethren.

A couple of weeks ago, my wife mentioned how much she enjoyed the song “It’s a New Day” by will.i.am. You must admit — it’s got a great hook. I downloaded the song from iTunes and we’ve enjoyed it ever since. The song seems to capture the feeling of victory that we should feel in this nation as an African-American reaches the highest office in the land.

Writing a post like this one may stir up feelings that I don’t intend in any who read it. Perhaps, if you’re an African-American, all I’ve done is reveal my real ignorance. If you’re not, you may feel as though I’m making too much of this event.

I don’t think we can make too much of it, but I’m also not ignorant enough to believe that there isn’t more healing needed. But I’m hoping that this goes a long way.

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I love you, Sweetheart! Happy Anniversary!

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A gigantic “Happy Birthday” to all of Uncle Sam’s Misguided Children today as the Corps celebrates number 233.

While I myself was not privileged to have served, I am the proud son of a US Marine. Thanks, Dad, for fighting for freedom with honor. And thanks for instilling in me the respect and value for the freedoms you and so many others fought — and continue to fight — to uphold.

It is my further honor to be the proud grandson of a US Marine. My mother’s father is one of a dwindling number of remaining Pearl Harbor survivors. Thanks, Pa-Po, for your dedication and service.

I’m proud of the heritage of the US Marines.  Thank you to all the leathernecks for your sacrifice and your service.

As we honor all veterans tomorrow, the Marines have a special place of honor in my family and heart.

Semper Fi

• Rev. Jack C. Carroll, USMC Ret. (1)

Since my real sticker is on my shirt today, I thought a “virtual” one was in order for the blog.

Thank you to all of our new visitors who have been here recently for information on the 2008 Florida Amendments. We hope to have you back again real soon!

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For me, it was an early morning networking meeting at the now-demolished Sarasota Quay. I remember hopping on my motorcycle to leave the parking lot when a State Trooper pulled up and blocked the exit.

President Bush was passing by on his way from The Colony on Longboat Key up Tamiami Trail to head toward Booker Elementary School.  It delayed my departure from the Quay for awhile. I had completely forgotten he was in town, so I sat there on my motorcycle facing the road and watched as the entourage of black vehicles eventually went by.

Then, it was off to visit a client. I had to make a brief stop at the bank where, after making a deposit, I exited into an eerily calm morning.  It was exactly 9:02am.  I looked at my watch before getting back on my bike and I remember the distinct feeling: something’s wrong.

I hadn’t yet heard about what was happening in New York City, but for a Tuesday morning something really seemed oddly quiet. In the distance, a siren wailing added to the unusual sensation.

A few short minutes later, I arrived at my client’s office where there was absolute bedlam. Someone had heard the news and was desperately trying to get CNN.com or any of the major news websites to load up.

We watched in horror as we finally saw clips of the planes flying into the buildings.

For me, the next steps were both immediately obvious and now a blur. Thanks to my friends Raj Doraisamy and Joe Brachle, as well as the entire team at Joe’s CSI Networks (then known as Computing Solutions), a full-scale effort was in place which by the end of the day yielded a community prayer meeting at Robarts Arena on Fruitville Road.

As many as 30-40 congregations in the Manatee and Sarasota County areas participated. Carolyn Mason, then mayor of Sarasota, was instrumental in getting us access to the Robarts facility at no charge. She announced the meeting at the city’s own vigil held downtown that afternoon.  Jeff MacFarlane and the crew of The Joy FM, as well as numerous other media outlets, were instrumental in helping to invite the community to come out to pray.

From 5pm to 10pm, Robarts was open for people to come and go as they desired.  Estimates at the time were that approximately 500 people had come and gone by the time the evening was over. My own lovely wife, Jill, sang for a good chunk of the evening.  People like Cindy Wright and Carlos Ramirez helped provide music. Numerous pastors and other local ministers, including Dan Nawara from The Living Sanctuary and Richard Brantley from The Rock of Sarasota, came out to lead people in prayer.

That evening represented some of the best things about this community. A group of people in a wild time of uncertainty — we had no idea if we were in for other attacks or not — came together just hours after the first devastating tragedy of the day, and were simply there for one another. It was something for those who needed to reach out to other people… and to God.

It was an unforgettable day… for so many reasons. Thank you to those of you local citizens that helped bring some light into a very dark day.

Image © Kate Duffell. Image from BigStockPhoto.com

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