Category: Point of Sale

Combat Fraud!

Combat Fraud With Layered Approach!

Encryption and Tokenization a strong combination to protect cardholder data at all points in the transaction cycle.

Encryption – the strongest protection for card data when it’s in transit. From the moment a payment card is swiped or dipped at a terminal featuring a hardware-based, tamper resistant security module. Encryption protects the card data from fraudsters as it travels across various systems and networks until it is decrypted at secure data center. Encryption is ideally suited for any businesses that processes card transactions in a face to face or card present environment.

Tokenization – protects card data when it’s in use and at rest. It converts or replaces cardholder data with a unique token ID to be used for subsequent transactions. This eliminates the possibility of having card data stolen because it no longer exists within your environment. Tokens can be used in card not present environments such as e-commerce or mail order/telephone order (MOTO), or in conjunction with encryption in card present environments. Tokens can reside on your POS/PMS or within your e-commerce infrastructure at rest and can be used to make adjustments, add new charges, make reservations, perform recurring transactions, or perform other transactions in use.

A layered approach can be the most effective way to combat fraud. Security solutions that provide layers of protection, when used in combination with EMV and PCI-DSS compliance; to ensure you’re doing all you can to protect cardholder data from increasingly complex and evolving security threats.

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Security, e-commerce & m-commerce, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Mail Order Telephone Order, Mobile Point of Sale, Payment Card Industry PCI Security, Point of Sale Tagged with: card data, card present, card transactions, card-not-present, cardholder, e-commerce, EMV, encryption, mail order, moto, payment card, PCI-DSS, PMS, POS, telephone order, terminal, tokenization, tokens

The Role of POS and MPOS Terminal in Payment Processing

It’s important for merchants to understand the basic of how a credit card terminal works. It is the channel through which the process flows and the merchants can choose the right one for their processing needs, whether they use a point-of-sale (POS) countertop model, a cardreader that attaches to a smartphone or mobile device, a sleek handheld version for wireless processing or a virtual terminal for e-commerce transactions.

A credit card terminal’s function is to retrieve the account data stored on the payment card’s EMV microchip or a magnetic stripe and pass it along to the payment processing company (also known as merchant account provider).

For card-not-present (CNP) – mail order, telephone order and online transactions – the merchant enters the information manually using a keypad on the terminal, or the e-commerce shopper enters it on the website’s payment page. The back half of the process remains the same.

The actual data transmission goes from the terminal through a phoneline or Internet connection to a Payment Processing Company, which routes it to the bank that issued the credit card for authorization.

In card-present transactions where the card and cardholder are physically present, the card is connected to the reader housed in the POS terminal. The data is captured and transmitted electronically to the merchant account provider, who handles the authorization process with the issuing bank and credit card networks.

A POS retail terminal with a phone or Internet connection works best in a traditional retail setting that deals exclusively in card present transactions. For a business with a mobile sales, a mobile credit card processing option like Virtual Merchant Converge Mobile relies on a downloadable app to transform a smartphone or tablet into a credit card terminal equipped with a USB cardreader.

Wireless Terminals are compact, allowing you to accept credit cards in the field without relying on a phone connection. If you process debit cards, you’ll need a PIN pad in addition to your terminal so cardholders can enter their personal identification number to complete the sale.

Selecting the right terminal for your credit card processing needs depends largely on the type of business you run and the sorts of transactions you process. Terminals are highly specialized and provide different services. At National Transaction we offer a broad range of terminals with NFC (near field communication) Capability to accept Apple Pay, Android Pay and other NFC/Contactless payment transactions at your business. An informed business decision benefits your bottom line. Start accepting credit cards today with National Transaction.

 

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit card Processing, e-commerce & m-commerce, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Mobile Point of Sale, Point of Sale Tagged with: Android Pay, Apple Pay, card-not-present, card-present transactions, cardholder, cardreader, cnp, contactless payment, Converge Mobile, credit card, credit card networks, credit card terminal, debit cards, e-commerce, EMV, magnetic stripe, mail order, merchant account provider, merchants, microchip, mobile credit card processing, mobile device, Near Field Communication, nfc, online transactions, payment processing company, PIN pad, point of sale, POS, POS terminal, smartphone, telephone order, virtual merchant, virtual terminal, wireless processing

Things Merchant should know!

If you’re a merchant accepting credit cards, you’re probably aware that things are changing. As of October 1st, 2015, merchants are now liable for any fraudulent activity that occurs as a result of non-EMV-compliant. For those Merchants who haven’t yet updated their POS terminal, you need to talk with your processor to get a new equipment.

Things Merchant should know to be EMV ready:

What is EMV Chip Cards? Chip Cards are standard bank cards that are embedded with a micro-computer chip. Some may require a PIN instead of a signature to complete the transaction process. The new cards will still have magnetic stripes, at least for the time being, so you technically can continue to process payments with the same old equipment you’ve been using for years. But by refusing to upgrade your hardware, you are taking on responsibility for any fraud that might have otherwise been prevented with the new technology.

How does EMV Chip Cards Work? Instead of swiping your card, you are going to do what is called card dipping, which means inserting your card into a terminal slot and waiting for it to process.

When a Chip Card or EMV Card is dipped, data flows between the card chip and the issuing financial institution to verify the card’s legitimacy and create the unique transaction data.

This process isn’t as quick as a magnetic-stripe swipe. It will take a little longer for that transmission of data.

What Must a Merchant Do? For merchants and financial institutions, the switch to EMV chip cards means adding new in-store technology and internal processing systems, and complying with new liability rules. Merchants who have not yet purchased new POS Terminal may be held liable for fraud as of October 1^st, 2015. Implementing EMV technology isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. If you are one of those in the retail business or retailers using mobile payment devices who missed the Oct. 1st deadline, you are already at risk. Upgrading should be a top priority.

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Point of Sale Tagged with: bank cards, chip cards, credit cards, data, EMV, financial institutions, magnetic stripes, merchant, mobile payment, PIN, POS terminal, processor, retail business, terminal slot

THE EMV EFFECT!

With the EMV liability shift that takes effect in October 2015, how much you’ll be affected depends on how you process credit card payments.

For Card Present Transactions

If you use POS hardware or terminal that you need to swipe the credit card, then you’ll be facing the same EMV environment as retailers. October 1^st is the start of the liability shift for fraudulent charges made with the card present transactions. The party who hasn’t made an investment in EMV security features will be liable.

For the card issuer, they need to invest in EMV security features, that’s why they came out with the chip cards, where all credit and debit cards have this security chips that are harder to counterfeit than magnetic strips.

For the merchant, they need to invest in EMV capable terminals or POS hardware that can take advantage of the card’s security chip.

If both parties have made the investment, then liability will be resolved in a similar manner to how it was before the shift. However, if only one party has adopted EMV technology, the party that didn’t make the investment will be held liable.

For Card Not Present Transaction (CNP)

If you process credit cards online, over the phone, or through an online payment gateway integrated, the new EMV standards won’t directly change the way you do business. You’ll still be processing EMV cards based on the customer’s credit card number.

Chances are Card-Not-Present transactions will experience an increase in fraud. Because of the EMV-technology in the Card Present Transaction, fraudster will likely turn their attention to the next target which is CNP,

but payment gateways and banks concerned about the vulnerabilities, will begin to adopt new standards to minimize their exposure.

If you’re processing CNP transactions stay up-to-date on the newest security developments, online security standards find more effective ways to navigate the new credit card security frontier.

 

 

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Mail Order Telephone Order, Point of Sale Tagged with: banks, Card Not Present Transaction, card-present transactions, chip cards, cnp, credit card, debit cards, EMV, merchant, payment gateway, payments, POS, terminal

Meeting EMV Standard

Rules have changed in regards to swiping credit cards October 1^st, 2015 with the EMV Liability Shift; which may not cause much concern for most consumers, but for merchants.

EMV compliance isn’t a legal requirement. However, if you’re a merchant that accepts credit cards in-person, then you need to find out whether you’re meeting the EMV Standard. The new rule for the liability shift applies October 1^st, regardless of the size or type of business. 

What Is EMV Standard?

EMV stands for EuroPay, MasterCard, and Visa, the three companies that originally created the standard.

The EMV Shift is to provide enhanced security and prevent fraudulent activity with credit cards. Updated equipment is also necessary for processing the new computerized cards, and unfortunately, the responsibility of securing up-to-date hardware falls on the merchant.

Since card evolves more instead of cash in our society, fraud and data breaches is on the increase, and now a common occurrence. Adapting new technology is therefore necessary. A hassle for many merchants, but there are actually benefits from all parties involved in a credit card transaction.

Data shows that fraud decreases dramatically when EMV Standards are implemented In Europe. The region has experienced an 80% reduction in credit card fraud, while the USA has seen a 47% increase by NOT implementing EMV standards.

The new liability rules took effect on October 1st in the US, and any party that has not yet implemented EMV-compliant machines might now be liable for fraud committed with counterfeit chip cards. Note that this liability shift only applies to in-person transactions. Phone order and web order transactions will be dealt with as they always were.

For Merchants, it means you’ll eventually need to get new equipment for processing credit cards payments in-person (unless you’ve already done so not too long ago, as nearly all POS terminals sold in the USA nowadays are EMV compliant). For most business owners, it’s a good idea to implement the new system sooner rather than later.

Step to take as a Merchant Until you get your EMV equipment

• Ask for an official ID from customers whose credit card you process.
• Conduct some research to see which EMV system would be best for your business.
• Start shopping around for new payment processing options that are EMV compliant. 

If you already have a machine that can process chip cards, you’re fully EMV-compliant.

If you don’t accept any in-person payments, then you’re all set.

If you do accept in-person payments and you do not have a chip card machine, chances are you’ll be fine for a little while. But those of you with a high risk of encountering a fake card (if you are a high-volume business with a large average ticket, for instance) should probably upgrade soon.

Fraudsters are going to be taking advantage of businesses that haven’t upgraded so it’s a great time to switch!

Check out NTC’s EMV/NFC Capable Terminal!  

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Point of Sale Tagged with: chip cards, credit card transaction, credit cards, credit cards payments, EMV, EMV equipment, EuroPay, high risk, MasterCard, merchants, nfc, payment processing, POS terminals, visa

Big Moment is Today Are you EMV Ready?

The day the payments industry has pointed to for several years arrives today, a turning point in the U.S.‘s migration to EMV chip-and-PIN cards.

Rules set by Visa and MasterCard as of today, the liability for fraud carried out in physical stores with counterfeit cards belongs to the merchant if it has not yet upgraded its POS system to accept EMV-enabled chip cards. Banks will be issuing EMV Chip Cards.

An enormous change, as everyone learns to deal with the new technology that requires consumers to insert their cards and leave them in the store machines throughout a payment transaction, rather than swipe.

In a recent survey, less than a third of merchants overall have invested in EMV-compliant technology, and one study said 80 percent of small and midsize merchants have not upgraded their systems as of today’s liability shift.

Issuers are claiming to be more prepared than merchants, but according to the Smart Card Alliance, around 200 million chip cards have been issued to U.S. cardholders. That, however, is less than 17 percent of the approximately 1.2 billion payment cards in circulation.

What is clear is that today does not represent the end of the journey. The lack of preparedness at the physical point of sale, however, may be beneficial for card-not-present merchants.

Over the past few months, the mainstream media has awoken to the fact that implementing EMV does not mean fraud will disappear. Fraudsters quickly adapted to the difficulty of counterfeiting cards by attacking Card-Not-Present channels, where a chip has no effect.

In other markets, fraud migrated quite rapidly to card-not-present channels. It is necessary on e-commerce merchants to protect themselves with an array of tools, like device authentication, one-time passwords, randomized PIN pad and biometrics. Fraud mitigation tools like data analytics, address and CVV verification, 3D secure and tokenization. These services should be available from their merchant acquirer processor or gateway.

There should be a gradual reduction in card fraud over the next 12-18 months in spite of the delays in this country’s EMV migration. It’s going to take time for the technology to be adopted.

U.S. Merchants’ overall relative lack of preparedness for EMV may give e-commerce and mobile merchants time they didn’t think they would have to explore the options.

Sophisticated authentication technologies such as biometrics will help increase the security of card transactions. Device-based verification could be easily incorporated in an EMV transaction.

Banks have expressed interest more in using the phone as a biometrics. It’s all going to depend on what is the most convenient way to access your funds. The nice thing about biometrics is it’s meant to enable more convenience and stronger security.

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, e-commerce & m-commerce, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Mobile Payments, Mobile Point of Sale, Point of Sale Tagged with: banks, biometrics, card fraud, card-not-present, chip cards, chip-and-PIN cards, e-commerce, EMV, gateway, merchant acquirer, merchants, mobile merchants, payments industry, point of sale, POS system, processor, tokenization, Visa and MasterCard

National Transaction Terminals with NFC (near field communication) Capability

National Transaction Terminals with NFC (near field communication) Capability to accept Apple Pay, Android Pay and other NFC payment transactions at your business. You will need to adopt point-of-sale devices with NFC/Contactless readers.

National Transaction offer a range of options to suite your specific needs.  

Give us a call now! 1-888-996-2273 or go to www.nationaltransaction.com

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit card Processing, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, Mobile Point of Sale, Near Field Communication, Point of Sale, Smartphone Tagged with: Android Pay, Apple Pay, contactless readers, Near Field Communication, nfc, payment, point of sale

Questions to ask to help you decide about terminal upgrade

If you accept credit cards and don’t know what EMV is here is what you need to know.

EMV stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa. A credit card that had a chip embedded in it is an EMV. EMV Cards have been standard in Europe for more than 10 years because they’re more secure than magnetic stripe cards. Magnetic stripe cards doesn’t change, it has static data, which makes them easy to clone. The chip embedded card makes it more difficult and costly to counterfeit because the data that is transmitted changes each time the card is read. This means less fraud.

Questions to ask to help you decide about terminal upgrade.

• Calculate your risk – Consider the cost of replacing your point-of-sale (POS) terminal vs. potential risk. Whether you replace it now or at a later time, eventually all businesses will have to replace their POS terminals.
• Educate your staff – Educated employees translate to better-educated customers. Merchants can help customers better understand this change and what it means for them.
• Upgrade your POS system – Consider using an EMV compliant credit-card reader on a wireless device for an ultra-secure mobile solution. This is also a chance to upgrade other options, such as near field communication NFC technology, which lets consumers use their mobile devices to make payments at the point of sale.

 

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Mobile Point of Sale, Near Field Communication, Point of Sale Tagged with: chip, credit card reader, credit cards, data, EMV, emv cards, EuroPay, magnetic stripe cards, MasterCard, merchants, Mobile Devices, Near Field Communication, nfc, payments, point of sale, POS terminal, visa

Apple Pay Revolution A new way to pay!

 

National Transaction Terminals with NFC (near field communication) Capability   

To accept Apple Pay transactions at your business, you will need to adopt point-of-sale devices with NFC/contactless readers.

National Transaction offer a range of options to suite your specific needs:

Tablet solutions:                                                                                                               Talech with iCMP device and NCR Silver.

Short-range wireless terminals for pay at the table: Bring the point-of-sale to your customers. Ideal for table-service restaurants, curbside pick-up, salons and more.

These terminals are all-in-one solutions with an integrated PIN Pad and printer. The short range terminals use secure, encrypted Bluetooth technology, allowing only the base and terminal to talk to each other, while also monitoring channels to prevent interference from other devices.

The Bluetooth terminals we offer are:                                                                            VeriFone VX680B and Ingenico iWL220B. (Both Bluetooth Wireless)

Long-range wireless (cellular/mobile) terminals: Have a long-life battery and compact design, which allows you to process transactions anywhere your customers are ideal for deliveries, kiosks and more.

These terminals are all-in-one solutions with an integrated PIN Pad and printer. Phone lines and internet connections are not required to take advantage of our mobile payment solutions.

The GPRS wireless terminals we offer are:                                                                      VeriFone VX680G and Ingenico iWL250G. (Both GPRS Wireless)

Countertop terminals:                                                                                                    

Ingenico iCT250 – has a “magic box” cable management system that prevents cable tangle and clutter. The terminal boasts a color display for improved readability and ease of use.

Verifone VX520 – has a built-in secure software authentication process which prevents unauthorized software applications from being downloaded.

Ingenico iCT220 with iPP320 external PIN pad – has a “magic box” cable management system that prevents cable tangle and clutter, along with a black and white screen for crisp visual clarity. Combine with an iPP320 for a consumer- facing solution to support contactless payments. (Note: the iCT220 device only supports contactless transactions when connected to this external PIN pad).

Whether you need a stand-alone POS terminal, want to take advantage of your existing tablet or PC, or require a wireless or mobile solution, National Transaction Corp., offers numerous user-friendly options. No matter how your customer wants to pay, NTC will help you enable quick and easy transactions from Traditional credit and debit cards, gift cards, smart cards (or EMV), mobile or digital wallets like Apple Pay and eCommerce or MOTO transactions.

Start growing your business quickly by accepting all kinds of credit card payments and  debit cards. Choose a state-of-the-art solution so you can accept payment in store or on your mobile device. With transparent pricing, live customer support, no cancellation fees and a secure platform, you’ll be confident you made the right partner for your business with National Transaction Corp.

Learn how easy it can be to accept any contactless or Apple Pay transactions.

Click here for more information about Apple Pay.

For Merchant Account Setup give us a call at 888-996-2273 or visit our website www.nationaltransaction.com

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, e-commerce & m-commerce, Mail Order Telephone Order, Mobile Point of Sale, Near Field Communication, Point of Sale Tagged with: Apple Pay transactions, contactless readers, Countertop terminals, credit card, debit cards, Digital wallets, ecommerce, Gift Cards, mobile payment, moto, Near Field Communication, nfc, PIN pad, point of sale, POS terminal, smart cards, wireless terminals

Are you EMV Capable or Enabled?

The credit card processing industry, have been working towards including EMV technology in all of the point of sale systems.

Many processors have sent out EMV capable devices that will need to be adjusted before they can start accepting EMV card transactions.

See which category you fall into so you are prepared when October 1 rolls around.

First, check and see if your credit card machine has the slot to accept EMV cards (it’s either a slot in front, or on the top of, the unit). If you don’t, you need to contact your processors or sales agent to update your equipment .

If you do have the slot for EMV cards, you’ll need to contact National Transaction to see if your EMV capable machine has been enabled to accept EMV cards.

What is the difference between EMV capable and EMV enabled?

• EMV Capable – EMV capable means that your credit card machine is equipped with the hardware (i.e. the slot) and has the capability to do a transaction, but first you’ll have to update the application to enable you to process the cards.                                                 At National Transaction, we have a support specialist to assist you with step-by-step instructions to switch your credit card Point-of-Sale System, from EMV capable to EMV enabled.

• EMV Enabled – When your machine is EMV enabled, your terminal is ready to accept EMV transactions.                                                                                                               According to MasterCard, 73 percent of consumers say owning a chip card would encourage them to use their card more often. In addition, 75 percent of consumers expect to use their chip card at the merchants where they shop today.                     Keeping these numbers in mind, it only makes sense to equip your business with an EMV enabled credit card POS system.

What makes EMV technology so important?

EMV is a global payment system that adds a microprocessor chip into credit cards and debit cards, and reduces the chance a transaction is being made with a stolen or copied credit card. Unlike traditional magnetic-stripe cards, anytime you use an EMV card, the chip in the card creates a unique transaction sequence that can’t be replicated. Because the number will never be valid again, it makes it hard for hackers to fake these cards. If they attempt to use the copied EMV card, the transaction would be denied.

The rollout of EMV technology is ongoing, but even with the October 1 deadline, it’s estimated that only 70 percent of credit cards and 40 percent of debit cards in the U.S. will support EMV. Despite these numbers, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t update your equipment.

Following the deadline, card present fraud liability will shift to whoever is the least EMV compliant party in a fraudulent transaction.

Make sure that’s not you!

 

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Credit card Processing, Credit Card Reader Terminal, Credit Card Security, EMV EuroPay MasterCard Visa, Point of Sale Tagged with: card present, card transactions, chip, chip card, credit card, credit card processing, debit cards, EMV, EMV capable, EMV enabled, emv technology, magnetic stripe cards, merchants, payment system, point of sale, POS, processors, terminal