Within the next 18 months, the four U.S. credit card giants will introduce EMV chip technology within their credit and debit cards. EMV chip technology , which stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, will replace the magnetic stripe (magstripe) with EMV chip technology on the reverse of credit cards. The conversion marks the long-awaited migration that has been fast-tracked in recent months due to the credit card data breaches suffered by retail chains Target, Neiman Marcus and Michael’s among others.
EMV Chip Credit Cards Timetable
Between August of 2011 and June of 2012, MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express each unveiled plans to roll out EMV chip credit cards by the fourth quarter of 2015. The new cards contain a high-security microchip which authenticates the card, card issuer (bank) and data stored in the card. The recent credit card data breaches suffered by the aforementioned retail chains has put the conversion plans into overdrive.
Credit cards will never be 100 percent secure, but EMV chip technology will prove to be far more effective than magstripe in preventing fraudsters from accessing card numbers and personal information. By October of 2015, many large U.S. retailers will have equipped their points of sale with terminals that recognize EMV chip technology.
EMV Chip Technology: What You Can Do
As credit card security advances, so does the sophistication of hackers and fraudsters. As Instabill has blogged in the past, credit card data breaches have become a case of ‘when’ and not ‘if.’ Therefore, consumers can take the following two steps:
- Contact your banks: Consumers should contact their card issuing banks and inquire when credit and debit cards with EMV chip technology will be available.
- Request EMV chip-enabled cards: Instead of a mass issue of EMV chip technology credit and debit cards, U.S. banks will likely distribute the new cards only when the old magstripe cards near expiration to cut costs. This is where consumers should be proactive and request EMV chip-enabled cards sooner rather than later for protective reasons.
Merchant Services and More at Instabill
Instabill is a payment service provider and credit card processor for e-commerce MOTO and POS businesses located in Portsmouth, N.H. Along with providing quality merchant services, Instabill copywriters are diligent in relaying the latest trends and news topics in the industry to merchants, partners and readers. To open a merchant account, contact one of our merchant account representatives at 1-800-318-2713 or begin the process at Instabill’s website, www.instabill.com.
