Chip-and-PIN cards

With an aim to minimize frauds, RBI has mandated that Banks must adopt Aadhaar as additional authentication or move to EMV (Euro pay MasterCard Visa) chip and pin technology to ensure security in card-based payment transactions.
The apex bank made it mandatory for debit card holders to punch in their PIN numbers every time they use the card. The PIN functions as another layer of security for the debit card which reduces the chances of fraud. While using it at PoS, merchants will first swipe the cards at a PIN enabled PoS terminal and punch in the transaction amount. That will be followed by customers punching their PINs to complete the transaction.
What are Chip-and-Pin cards?
A chip-and-PIN card is a plastic card of standard size. It has two chips a) An embedded chip b) A traditional magnetic strip.  In order to accomplish a transaction, a customer has to punch in his/her PIN number. In case the card gets  stolen or lost, it is very difficult to copy the card due to presence of the embedded microchip.
Objective: The overall system of the card designed in order to make it more difficult for criminals to cash in on credit card fraud.
What information is stored on the chip?
Information is stored on the embedded chip, which is needed for authentication purpose during a transaction. This information on the embedded chip is of the same nature as stored in today’s magnetic stripe. The chip is safe as there is no personal information about customer’s a/c stored on the embedded chip.

Month: Current Affairs - February, 2014