The worldwide switch from bank cards with easily copied magnetic strips to cards with more secure micro-chips was kicked off locally by Absa and Visa yesterday. There are already 120000 point-of-sale terminals in local shops that are able to read Europay MasterCard Visa standard chip cards. Absa general manager Walter Volker said that chips have advantages over mag strips be-yond security. Personal identification numbers and bank balances can be stored on the card, allowing offline transaction. - Staff reporter
The worldwide switch from bank cards with easily copied magnetic strips to cards with more secure micro-chips was kicked off locally by Absa and Visa yesterday. There are already 120000 point-of-sale terminals in local shops that are able to read Europay MasterCard Visa standard chip cards. Absa general manager Walter Volker said that chips have advantages over mag strips be-yond security. Personal identification numbers and bank balances can be stored on the card, allowing offline transaction. - Staff reporter