Businesses involved in the manufacture, sale, or distribution of firearms, weapons, explosives, and related materials. This category includes guns, ammunition, weapon components, and accessories. Due to strict regulations, legal restrictions, and potential misuse, these products are considered high-risk. The category may also encompasses replicas, toys resembling modern firearms, and less-lethal self-defense items like pepper spray and stun guns. Mastercard unveiled a new MCC for guns and ammunition shops in July 2024 with category code 5723, so this category is somewhat deprecated. Firearms may also appear under MCC 5099, 'Durable Goods, Not Elsewhere Classified', which can be a category that acts as a hiding place for unlicensed firearm sales since it encompasses a wide range of products.

Refers to airlines or air carriers not classified under a specific MCC. Airlines generally face risks related to high transaction volumes, ticket fraud, and chargebacks, especially with online bookings. Most airlines have their own MCC code, so an airline that does not is a sign of a small, potentially less trustworthy carrier.

This MCC includes businesses related to the aviation industry, such as airports and aviation services. Aviation MCCs have caused controversies due to overlap between airfare and non-airline services that happen to take place in airports, such as food courts, retail, and car rentals. These issues should be resolved by classifying airport services under their designated MCCs rather than as airport-related, e.g. 5812 for food court restaurants. This MCC is reserved for truly aviation-related services such as aircraft cleaning, aircraft repair, aircraft storage at airports, and airport hangar rental.

This MCC covers services that provide internet access, cloud storage, and file-sharing platforms. The high-risk nature comes from the potential for these platforms to be used for distributing illegal content, intellectual property violations, and other cybercrimes. Identifying legitimate uses versus abuse (e.g., pirated material) is a challenge for both payment processors and authorities, but the high-risk nature of cyberlockers has led to many payment processors blocking the category.

This MCC is a catch-all for a wide range of products that don't fit into other categories, including Fire Extinguishers, Firearms, Ammunition, Gas Lighting Fixtures, Gravestones, certain luggage, Monuments, Musical Instruments, and Rough Timber Products. It can be a hiding place for unlicensed firearm sales since it encompasses a wide range of products.

This MCC is one of the highest risk categories possible, encompassing "wholesale distributors of prescription and proprietary drugs, vitamins, toiletries, antiseptics, bandages, pharmaceuticals, biological or related products, and other miscellaneous small articles typically for sale in drug stores" according to Mastercard. Ensuring compliance with a litany of regulations, shipping requirements, 'unsupported health claim' requirements, and FDA warning letters is a challenge for platforms.

Wholesalers who distribute alcoholic beverages to retailers. Similar to retail alcohol sales, wholesalers deal with legal regulations, large transactions, and potential regulatory issues, especially in online sales. SafetyKit handles and enforces these complexities, distinguishing between products with domestic and international shipping, products with low alcohol and high alcohol percentages, and products with and without age verification.

This MCC includes merchants whose primary business is the sale of firearms and ammunition. It is a high-risk category due to the potential for misuse and illegal activities, such as the sale of unlicensed firearms and ammunition. This is one of the first MCCs that is only applied to vendors in certain states, making it critical to understand the merchant's location and jurisdiction.

Merchants classified with this MCC sell prescription and proprietary drugs and nonprescription medicines. These Merchants may also sell cosmetics, toiletries, and novelty merchandise. This MCC is high risk: illegal drugs and controlled substances could easily sneak in when a website sells hundreds of drugs. These businesses are particularly scrutnized for chargeback rates, unsubstantiated health claims (against FDA regulation), and undisclosed nutritional facts and drug composition. Additionally, in Canada, businesses that primarily sell cannabis must use this MCC, connecting it with more risky products.

Businesses involved in the sale of alcoholic beverages like wine and spirits. Alcohol sales involve age verification, legal regulations, and chargeback potential, especially in online sales, leading to restricted status on many payment processing services (including Stripe), strict import and export restrictions, and prohibited status in several countries such as India and Thailand.

This category is a misnomer. It is best known for the broad swath of online adult content it covers. Take it from Mastercard: "Merchants that provide one or more audiotext or videotext services that can be accessed via phone, fax, or over an open network such as the Internet. The cardholder initiates contact with the merchant and all subsequent transactions. This MCC applies to information services offered over the telephone or the Internet, as well as to products that may be sold through such services. Information services are provided for a fee and may include polls, sweepstakes, adult chat and entertainment, sports scores, stock market quotes, horoscope readings, or other audio text or videotext services that consumers listen to, view, or participate in."

This MCC includes any subscriptions sold via direct mail, email, apps, or salespeople, with the highest risk featured component being nutraceuticals.

Tobacco, cigarettes, electronic cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and smokers’ supplies fall under this category. It is banned by many payment processors because of strict compliance rules and shipping regulations and restrictions. Even transactions adjacent to these stores (eg funding for rebuilding a tobacco store that has burned down) may be considered too risky for certain platforms due to involvement with the tobacco industry and uncertainty with how the funds will be used.

This is a Mandatory Multiple MCC, meaning any merchant with this category must also have a second, more specific MCC. It is high risk due to the inclusion of cryptocurrency and other financial assets often involved in scams, fraud, and money laundering.

Merchants classified with this MCC are licensed, in all jurisdictions they sell into to buy, sell and broker securities, stocks, bonds, commodities, and mutual funds. The MCC is high risk because it includes financial trading platforms that may use card-absent transactions (in other words, buying stocks on a credit card rather than with cash you own).

This MCC involves the sale or funding of stored-value cards or prepaid loans outside of financial institutions. These transactions are considered high-risk due to their potential use in money laundering and fraud, as prepaid cards are often used in untraceable transactions. Stored value cards are also used to 'clean' dirty money, where they can be purchased with stolen funds and then used to make legitimate purchases, making them the center of fraud schemes and money laundering. Platforming these transactions can be risky.

Merchants classified with this MCC sell timeshare real estate or memberships in timeshare vacation plans. These Merchants may also rent timeshare properties. Timeshares often use high-pressure sales tactics and have a history of deceptive practices, leading to high chargeback rates and legal issues.

Merchants classified with this MCC provide massage services. This category is associated with high chargeback rates and legal issues, including allegations of prostitution and, in extreme cases, human trafficking. Identifying whether a business is a legitimate massage parlor is a challenge for platforms and requires identifying the specific services they offer, how they attract customers, and dozens of fraud and abuse vectors SafetyKit scans and monitors.

According to Mastercard, "Merchants classified with the MCC collect payments of overdue receivables under contract or collect overdue receivables that they have purchased from a third party." Processing these transactions through a credit card processor is a high-risk behavior, as it can be associated with scams, fraud, chargebacks, and illegal activities.

While this MCC encompasses a broad range of management, consulting, and public relations services, its primary chargeback is SEO and online marketing services, which are often placed under this MCC. When SEO (search engine optimization) services sell faux 'engagement', followers, black-hat SEO strategies, and 'clicks' on social media, they may violate guidance prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and those organizations' international counterparts. Identifying these violations and parsing legitimate consulting and online marketing services from illegitimate ones is a challenge for platforms and requires identifying the specific practices the business offers, where the business is located, and dozens of fraud and abuse vectors SafetyKit scans and monitors.

Businesses offering work-from-home programs, often via direct marketing. This sector has a history of high fraud potential, scams, and chargeback issues, making it high risk

Auto sales, particularly used vehicles, can face high chargeback rates, financing fraud, and warranty disputes. Auto Body Repair falls under MCC 7531, tire repair and retreading falls under 7534, car painting and restoration is under 7535, and non-dealer auto repair is under 7538, which includes most other types of repairs.

This MCC refers to businesses providing adult entertainment, such as clubs, websites, or related services. Due to the sensitive nature of the business, adult entertainment is associated with high chargeback rates, legal restrictions, and fraud risks.

Merchants classified with this MCC include Lottery Tickets, Casino Gaming Chips, Off-Track Betting, Wagers at Race Tracks and games of chance to win prizes of monetary value. Correctly classifying merchants in this high risk MCC is critical, as merchants may both skirt it and be misclassified as it. Unscrupulous merchants may hide their betting under MCCs like 5816 (Digital Goods - Games), which can include fantasy sports betting; nonprofits with the legal right to throw fundraisers may be accidentally added to this category if they hold fundraising lotteries.

Merchants classified with this MCC are medical professionals that are not classified with a more specific MCC. As a result, legitimate medical practices (physical therapy, psychiatrists, blood banks, and fertility clinics for example) are grouped in with a riskier category: medical marijuana and dispensaries.

Services related to agricultural cooperatives and farming assistance. While traditionally a lower-risk sector, some agriculture-related services can involve significant financial transactions and government subsidies, leading to risk of fraud​. Specifically, the MCC includes financial assistance for farmers, which can be a major risk factor.