Report: Apple Pay System Hit By 'Wave Of Fraudulent Transactions'

Apple Inc.'s AAPL new mobile-payment system has been hit with a "wave of fraudulent transactions" using credit-card data that have been stolen in recent breaches, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The publication, citing sources familiar with the matter, noted that 80 percent of the unauthorized transactions have been for big-ticket items bought with smartphones at Apple stores. However, the sources added that Apple Pay's system itself hasn't been penetrated by hackers, rather fraudsters are entering stolen card data manually on their phones.

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Apple hasn't yet provided specific data on the number of Apple Pay users, but the company did say that its service accounted for two of every three dollars spent in the U.S. visa mobile payments on the major credit-card networks.

The fraud report highlights the need for greater security methods and the bogus purchases according to WSJ "are a setback for Apple's high-profile foray into electronic payments."

Shares of Apple were up about 0.5 percent at $127 in Friday's premarket.