Visa and Mastercard have ended their plans to track gun purchases in a win for Second Amendment advocates.
The announcement is an abrupt change from the previous efforts by the companies that would have added a code to track the purchase of firearms in the U.S.
Visa and Mastercard have halted their plans to use a new merchant code to track gun purchases. https://t.co/R3Sx6KXkqs
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) March 9, 2023
"Visa and Mastercard dropped their plans to track firearm and ammunition purchases because of my legislation," West Virginia Treasury Secretary Riley Moore tweeted.
"When conservatives fight, we win," he added.
Visa and Mastercard dropped their plans to track firearm and ammunition purchases because of my legislation.
When conservatives fight, we win. pic.twitter.com/m1rOfJSoVU
— Riley Moore (@RileyMooreWV) March 9, 2023
Discover is still planning to track gun store purchases beginning in April.
"Discover Financial Services (DFS.N), a provider of credit cards, told Reuters it will allow its network to track purchases at gun retailers come April, making it the first among its peers to publicly give a date for moving ahead with the initiative, which is aimed at helping authorities probe gun-related crimes," Reuters reported.
The same article went on to claim, "Discover's announcement came after the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which decides on the classification of merchant categories used by payment cards, approved in September the launch of a dedicated code for gun retailers."
Discover Financial to reportedly track gun store purchases starting in April https://t.co/Bd9bvIafR9
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 3, 2023
The difference in the Discover purchase system is that it plans to track purchases in gun stores rather than specific items. The transactions would then include both firearms and other items such as safes or hunting gear.
The company includes 55 million Discover cards, offering a new level of tracking for gun purchases despite the change in plans by Visa and Mastercard.
Second Amendment advocates may find themselves in an effort in which they seek to boycott Discover or at least not use the company's card for gun purchases.
The new tracking policies are a growing concern for millions of American firearms owners who seek to exercise their right to bear arms without increased tracking by card companies and the federal government. The new change does nothing to help reduce illegal gun use but only punishes law-abiding citizens using firearms legally.
