credit cards, debit cards and smart cards-what gives?

Question

they say they are encrypted and we do not have to worry?---BULL$HIT!!!!!!

Answer 1

The applications of smart cards include their use as credit or ATM cards, SIMs for mobile phones, authorization cards for pay television, high-security identification and access-control cards, and public transport and public phone payment cards.

Smart cards may also be used as electronic wallets. The smart card chip can be loaded with funds which can be spent in parking meters and vending machines or at various merchants. Cryptographic protocols protect the exchange of money between the smart card and the accepting machine. Examples are Proton, GeldKarte, Moneo and Quick.

A quickly growing application is in digital identification cards. In this application, the cards are used for authentication of identity. The most common example is in conjunction with a PKI. The smart card will store an encrypted digital certificate issued from the PKI along with any other relevant or needed information about the card holder. Examples include the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Common Access Card (CAC), and the use of various smart cards by many governments as identification cards for their citizens. When combined with biometrics, smart cards can provide two- or three-factor authentication. Smart cards are a privacy-enhancing technology, for the subject carries possibly incriminating information about him all the time. By employing contactless smart cards, that can be read without having to remove the card from the wallet or even the garment it is in, one can add even more authentication value to the human carrier of the cards.

Smart cards have been advertised as suitable for these tasks, because they are engineered to be tamper resistant. The embedded chip of a smart card usually implements some cryptographic algorithm. Information about the inner workings of this algorithm can be obtained if the precise time and electrical current required for certain encryption or decryption operations is measured. A number of research projects have now demonstrated the feasibility of this line of attack. Countermeasures have been proposed.

Smart cards are widely used to protect digital television streams. See television encryption for an overview, and VideoGuard for a specific example of how smartcard security worked (and was cracked).

Another problem of smart cards may be the failure rate. The plastic card in which the chip is embedded is fairly flexible, and the larger the chip, the higher the probability of breaking. Smart cards are often carried in wallets or pockets — a fairly harsh environment for a chip. However, for large banking systems, the failure-management cost can be more than offset by the fraud reduction.

Answer 2

If you go into real cracker chat rooms on IRC. You will see people saying stuff like 100 CC for sale with Info or Want to buy some CC. This means they would like to sale 100 credit cards along with Information of the owner of the card.

It is easy to get the credit card information on Insecure websties. Basicly never put your card on a site that has poor security/web designs. Even though they can still hack well built sites its just its more secure.

Answer 3

Common Sense is the Key to using and maintaining Credit Cards!
Personal Data Fraud requires You to make your account details available to a third party!
Most C.C Companies and banks have Insurance Built in!Which compensates Fraudulent use!

Just as Long as The Card Owner Exercises Common Sense(Which there seems to be a National Shortage of!!)

Answer 4

I agree with the RFID contact less cards. The chip cards are still safe if they don't have the magnetic strip. My bank was correct in not getting Mastercard paypass. I think you can cover the card in foil(or something else) to block the RFID signal. I wander if this will put a halt in the National ID program? Congress said state must have them or lose funding.

ACLU can now retry the cases they lost because they have prove RFID can be stolen.

Answer 5

Certainly no. Y/A never asked your debit or credit card to ask questions !!

Answer 6

I don't know why people are so worried anyway. Most card companies will credit back any fraud that takes place. If you are smart and keep track of your accounts online, you're not going to have a case where someone goes nuts with your card.

Answer 7

choose ones that you're protected from fraud with. then it's their problem.