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What Is EMV & How Does It Effect My Business?

If you have received a new credit or debit card recently, it probably looks a little different. For the past 18 months, all newly issued cards are coming equipped with something called EMV technology, which stands for “Europay, MasterCard, and Visa.” Translation: they contain a super-small computer chip that’s extremely hard to counterfeit or duplicate.

Why Is This Change Needed?

Here is scary statistic: Nearly half of the world’s credit card fraud occurs in the United States -- even though only a quarter of all credit card transactions happen here. Credit card fraud accounts for billions of dollars in losses each year for businesses nationwide. The banks want to try and rein in this fraud ASAP by moving away from magnetic-stripe cards, which are much easier to counterfeit. The recent high-profile security breaches at some of the nations largest retailers have added motivation to make this transition as quickly as possible.

How Does This Change Effect Your Business?

For starters, your business will need new processing equipment to read the information in the chip cards. And as of October 2015, businesses that don’t have an EMV processing device will be on the hook for fraudulent chip card transactions. This is something called the “liability shift".

It used to be that if you ran a fraudulent card, the card issuing bank would absorbed the costs. But as of October 2015, if someone pays with a fraudulent chip card, and you’re not set up with an EMV capable card reader, the banks will no longer be liable. So for example, a fraudster buys $50 worth of hot sauce from a restaurant with a counterfeit EMV chip card. If the restaurant doesn’t have an EMV chip card reader to process the transaction, it will be on the hook for the entire $50.00

Is EMV Technology New?

No. Most of the world, including Europe, has been using EMV chip cards for years. The United States is actually the last major market to make the transition over to EMV technology and we still have a majority of consumers using magnetic-stripe cards.

Are The New Chip Cards Swiped Like The Magnetic-Stripe Cards?

No. Chip cards are inserted, or “dipped,” into the payment device and left in place for the entire transaction as the reader and card talk back and forth.

One thing to know is that EMV transactions take a lot longer than magnetic stripe transactions (several seconds longer, in fact). NFC transactions (like Apple Pay) are just as secure as EMV transactions, but are much faster.

What's The Difference Between EMV and NFC?

EMV and NFC are often mentioned in the same conversation. That’s because they both represent the future of more secure, authenticated payments. However, they’re not interchangeable (a common mistake people make). EMV and NFC are actually entirely different technologies.

EMV is synonymous with chip card technology. NFC which stands for “near field communication” goes hand in hand with contactless, mobile payments. Basically, NFC is the technology that allows smartphones and other devices (like a payments reader) to communicate with each other when they’re close together. The devices have to be close though, usually around three inches or less apart. Apple Pay is probably the most widely-known example of NFC technology.

Are EMV Terminals and Devices Expensive?

Not with Tailored Transactions -- we've got you covered. We provide all of our clients with Free EMV terminals that will process the new chip cards, protecting you from the liability shift. These terminals also have the NFC technology built-in, allowing you to accept Apple Pay and all other mobile wallets.

To learn more, please visit the EMV Equipment Page on our website.

If you would like to receive a no-obligation Free Rate Quote on your credit card processing, Click Here to complete our online request form. We will send you a detailed rate quote within 24 hours.

Visit us online at www.TailoredTransactions.com or call us directly (888) 669.1686