EMV IS THE ACRONYM for Europay, MasterCard and Visa - the three credit card companies came together in the late Nineties to find a way to replace old-style cards that use a magnetic strip to store information. The problem was that those cards could be copied easily, allowing criminals to make duplicates and buy goods or obtain cash. Because card companies are liable for such fraud, they obviously have an interest in finding ways to stop it.
The solution was to move from a magnetic strip to a chip card. The card companies set January 2005 as the date for banks to move to the new system, after which any fraud perpetrated on a card using a magnetic strip rather than a chip would be the responsibility of the issuing bank rather than the card company.
All chip card transactions will have to be authorised with a PIN code, as when currently withdrawing money from an ATM or using a debit card. If a card is stolen it will be impossible to buy something or draw money from an ATM without a PIN number. Debit cards will also move to the EMV system, but that will be a smaller adjustment as they've always required a PIN code.
The solution was to move from a magnetic strip to a chip card. The card companies set January 2005 as the date for banks to move to the new system, after which any fraud perpetrated on a card using a magnetic strip rather than a chip would be the responsibility of the issuing bank rather than the card company.
All chip card transactions will have to be authorised with a PIN code, as when currently withdrawing money from an ATM or using a debit card. If a card is stolen it will be impossible to buy something or draw money from an ATM without a PIN number. Debit cards will also move to the EMV system, but that will be a smaller adjustment as they've always required a PIN code.