Throughout the United States, many people use cards for making purchases. The results of a 2014 survey found that 43% of respondents preferred to purchase items with debit cards while 35% chose to buy items with credit cards. Considering the popularity of these items, debit and credit card companies have been making improvements for their customers. One of these improvements is the creation of smart cards. In this post, you’ll learn more about smart cards and why they’re so beneficial.
What Makes a Card Smart
It’s understandable to wonder whether or not you own a smart card. Most consumers have received new versions of their old debit and credit cards in the mail. These new items often feature what looks like a small metallic square on the card’s front side. This new addition isn’t there for cosmetic purposes, it’s actually a small microprocessor. Smart card scanners read the microprocessor and process the information stored inside.
Advantages of Having a Smart Card
In the past, debit and credit cards stored information on magnetic strips. These strips contained information including account numbers, names, and other personal details about the cardholder. With that in mind, it’s understandable to wonder about the advantages of owning cards with their own microprocessors. Considering that, here are the main benefits of using smart cards.
- Higher Level of Security
Research shows that nearly 70% of adults throughout the United States have at least one credit card. Unfortunately, criminals understand how popular credit cards are. Considering that, they’ve come up with various ways to steal consumer’s credit card information. Fortunately, smart cards utilize a combination of encryption and validation. In turn, this makes smart cards far more secure than those with only a magnetic strip. Certain smart credit card readers can even deactivate cards used in an illegal manner. - Versatility
Many people understand the burden of having multiple cards in their wallets. However, people need to have several cards in order to pay for items and identify themselves to others. Fortunately, smart cards are able to store multiple types of information. In turn, certain individuals are able to use a single smart card for multiple purposes.
In conclusion, it’s understandable to wonder why smart cards have risen in popularity. If you’re a business owner, it’s certainly wise to consider purchasing smart card scanners. Owning smart card readers makes it convenient for customers to do business with your company. In fact, a recent study found that about 70% of consumers currently own a smart card. If you don’t have these readers already, you’ll want to contact a smart card scanner company right away.
