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What is an EMV Card Chip

EMV chip enabled credit cards and debit cards add extra layers of protection against fraud. It also increases the security of the card holder's data, thereby reducing the number of chargebacks and other issues related to stolen personal data. EMV is an acronym for the three companies that originally developed this new technology, "Europay, MasterCard, and Visa." Having read this, you may still be

asking yourself, "What is an EMV card chip?"


An EMV card chip is a tiny microprocessor chip embedded inside a credit card or debit card. This is why EMV chip enabled cards feel a bit thicker and sturdier. These cards will either require a signature by the holder or a PIN number to be entered to complete a point of sale transactions.
Traditional magstripe credit cards and debit cards are easily skimmed (read) by fraudsters which they then use to create counterfeit cards. This can be done by someone standing in a checkout line or even while waiting in line at a bank ATM! Unfortunately too, readers are showing up for sale on the internet which makes the pool of potential counterfeiters much larger. This is why card present fraudulent activity has been rising so precipitously recently.

As much as some merchants and some card users resist such a significant change in the way the receive or give payment, there's actually a huge positive for both buyers and sellers. EMV chip enabled credit cards and debit cards cannot be skimmed! This avoids a great deal of hassle on both sides. Many customers are actually very happy their bank(s) issued them new cards with added chip security so getting onboard early with this technology can also be a plus. On the other hand, for those customers who are slow to transition to chip technology, you will still be able to swipe traditional magstripe cards on your EMV card chip enabled equipment.