EMV Chip
Definition
Integrated-circuit chip following the EMV (Europay-Mastercard-Visa) specification. Contact interface per ISO/IEC 7816, contactless per ISO/IEC 14443. Generates dynamic cryptograms that defeat static-data cloning.
- Standard
- EMV (Europay-Mastercard-Visa)
- Contact interface
- ISO/IEC 7816
- Contactless interface
- ISO/IEC 14443
- Security feature
- Dynamic per-transaction cryptograms
Common questions
Why does an EMV chip resist the cloning that worked on magnetic stripes?+
Each transaction generates a unique cryptogram using a secret key stored inside the chip, so a static copy of data captured from one transaction cannot be replayed to authorise another.
Does EMV eliminate card fraud?+
No. It greatly reduces counterfeit-card fraud but does not stop card-not-present fraud or attacks that steal the card number for online use rather than cloning the chip itself.
Related terms
- BIN / IIN
- Bank Identification Number, formally the Issuer Identification Number under ISO/IEC 7812. The first six digits of the PAN identify the issuing institution...
- CVV / CVC
- Card Verification Value (Visa) or Card Verification Code (Mastercard). CVV1 is encoded on the magnetic stripe, CVV2/CVC2 is the 3-digit printed code...
- Embossing
- Raised characters on older card fronts produced by an embosser; modern cards are increasingly flat-printed because POS imprinters are obsolete.
- Hologram
- Diffractive optical security feature: Visa dove, Mastercard interlocking globes, RuPay tricolour. Hard to reproduce without specialised embossing equipment.
- Magnetic Stripe
- Ferromagnetic strip on the card reverse encoding account data on three tracks per ISO/IEC 7811. Track 1 alphanumeric (79 chars), Track 2...
- NFC
- Near Field Communication, the 13.56 MHz contactless radio interface used for tap-to-pay. Built on ISO/IEC 14443 and underlies UPI Lite and RuPay...
- PVC Card Body
- Standard payment card construction: polyvinyl chloride core sandwiched between two transparent laminated overlays. Card dimensions 85.60 by 53.98 mm per ISO/IEC 7810...
- Shimmer
- Thin sliver-shaped device inserted inside the chip reader of an ATM or POS to intercept data exchanged with the EMV chip.
- Signature Panel
- White panel on the card reverse printed with a tamper-evident background (often the issuer name repeated or the word VOID appearing if...
- Skimmer
- Overlay device fitted on an ATM card slot or POS terminal that reads and stores the magnetic stripe data of cards swiped...
- Tokenisation
- RBI-mandated mechanism that replaces the PAN stored at merchants with a token usable only by that merchant, reducing the value of stolen...