Every time a card terminal chirps and a sale goes through, a small slice of that purchase is quietly carved off and routed ...

Accepting credit cards requires a payment processor like Square or Stripe, a merchant account, and hardware like POS terminals. Fees range from 1.5% to 4%.

Credit card processing scams come in all forms. They can be a phone call from an alleged merchant service provider saying your card terminal needs updating or an email offering rate reductions.