Posted on 02/06/2017 2:08:48 PM PST by Red Badger
It’s a tiny chip that elicits big opinions.
Meant to protect customers from credit card fraud, most cards now have security chips, and many businesses bought the chip readers to go with it. But more than a year after they became common place, research shows that identity theft is actually up.
“With all the credit card hacking and privacy invasion, I think it’s a fantastic idea,” said one consumer.
Not so, said another. “It holds you up. It’s annoying.”
Consumers and businesses switched to the chip-based cards and readers 16 months ago to deter theft. But a study released this week from Javelin Strategy and Research found that identity fraud cases rose 16 percent in 2016, which equates to 15.4 million new victims – a record high. Lane Conner, founder and CEO of credit card processor Fuze said the chip rollout was bungled from the start, in part because it was supposed to require a pin – not just a signature.
“The real security was supposed to be the pin and actually putting your pin in when you actually dip the card,” he said. “A bad guy could just as easily steal your wallet, go and dip a credit card into a machine and sign for it like they’re you as you could swiping a card.
He also said the increase in e-commerce is to blame, since online shopping offers virtually no credit card protection. For business owner kory helfman of ken’s man’s shop, the spike in fraud cases is concerning.
“It scares me as a business owner, not only for our store but also for our clientele. No one wants to come under any kind of fraud,” he said.
But overall Conner is comfortable with the protection the chip readers gives. And that’s a good thing given the chip is here to stay.
“As badly as it was done, the ship has sailed on ever going back to swiping cards,” said Conner.
Without the associated PIN it is useless
I think it's just another data trolling device to track citizen's movements. It serves no other purpose (and doesn't even do that well). I hate 'em.
In this article, they didn’t report even one incident of this card being used for identity theft.
They merely pointed to incidents of identity theft going up after their introduction.
There are plenty of ways to execute identity theft. I remain unconvinced these cards are the problem.
As near as I can tell it is a useless complication that “enhances” nothing over the standard magnetic strip. Except that now I have to keep such cards in a pocket “Faraday cage” to keep them from being “read” remotely.
Each of my CCs have a chip and magnetic strip.
When the chip reader isn’t working I swipe it. It works.
I do it fairly often.
What I really like doing is using my Apple Pay.
You guys are behind the times on this stuff.
We’ve had chip and PIN cards in Canada for some years now (always chip AND PIN).
Adds no significant time to a credit card transaction as compared to swiping and then signing a receipt, that I’ve noticed.
For transactions under $100, we now have cards that are “Tap” (NFC) enabled. I believe the “Tap” codes embedded in the cards are pretty secure, and tied in to the chip. These cards can of course be easily used if stolen, but as mentioned, only for less than $100 at a time.
I couldn’t tell you what the pin is on mine.
However, if they want to institute pins, start by charging a $0.25 insurance fee for transactions without the pin. Notify people 1 month in advance of instituting the fee.
Every 2 months increase the fee by an additional $0.25.
Once it hit’s $1.00 of 99% of transactions are pinned, whichever comes first, give a two month notice that pins will be required.
The flaw is that online shopping isn’t going to have a pin. And requiring retailers to have the pin, is one more disadvantage that bricks and mortar have.
I never did understand how the chip was supposed to aid in security.
Before, I had to swipe the card and then enter my PIN number.
Now, I just stick the card in the slot and no PIN number is needed.
How was that supposed to be a better idea?
I have 4 credit cards with the chips: 2 Visa, 1 discover and one old and still free AMX.
None of the them use a pin #, because I don’t want cash back with these cards.
Our bank debit card uses a pin for atm withdrawals. I never use any debit card in a store or online.
I’ve never had a problem with chip readers on my new card, and wish they would require it everywhere, PIN or no PIN. A chip cannot be quietly skimmed by, for example, a fake card reader at an ATM or gas pump, or a dishonest waiter. With the chip you have to have the physical card, and if someone steals it, you can call and have the card cancelled. If they go to using the PIN, so much the better. I really wish they would send an instant text message to the owner every single time the card is used, in real time.
My wife has been in banking for 40 years (bank, savings & loan, credit union). She predicted this years ago. Says the criminal element was just waiting for the US to force implementation on enough retailers and citizens before it would become a problem.
That would be “Tap” (i.e. NFC) technology. The chip itself is only readable through the physical contacts on the chip.
As far as the Tap/NFC stuff goes, my credit card company will disable that functionality for my credit card if requested (in fact, I may have had to specifically request it to be enabled in the first place). I imagine yours would do the same, if you’re worried about it. Although on a credit card any fraud is mostly the card issuer’s problem, not yours.
Smart decision. Unfortunately, millennials live and die by the debit card. Bank fraud is only going to get worse, even with more sophisticated security methods.
Yeah, the financial institutions. Card services like VISA are nearly immune from any responsibilities. Such a scam. Bookies and loan sharks are jealous.
I use cash. If I don’t have the cash, I don’t buy it.
The magnetic stripe is easily read and reproduced.
The chip is not so easily reproduced - it contains code which is not accessible by any reader. So the chips make producing “cloned” credit cards much more difficult than the old ways of copying the stripe and producing bogus cards.
It figures that we (the powers that be) would take the fantastic PIN-and-chip idea and screw it up.
My wife was like you, and about a year ago she gave up and went to a credit card.
Personally, I would be happy to never use cash.
If there’s data on it, somebody can steal it. And the more data on it, the easier it is to steal. Unless the data on the chip is re-encrypted at every transaction, then it will be stolen.
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