SYRIA - Hopes for an early breakthrough in the Israeli-Syrian Peace Talks have faded but slow movement forward continues. NPR's Ted Clark reports. -b- 16. CREDIT CARD SECURITY - NPR's John McChesney reports that Visa and Mastercard have agreed on a single technical standard that they say will allow for secure purchases over the Internet. The two credit card giants had been pursuing different systems with conflicting security specifications. Today's announcement means banks and consumers will not have to worry about choosing one system over the other.

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