25.8 billion payment cards by the end of 2022
However, despite the great diffusion achieved by contactless payment technologies, through smartphones such as PayPal, Square, LevelUp, PayFort and other electronic wallets, this has not limited the dominance of traditional payment cards on payment methods when carrying out financial transactions in the world, and this is confirmed by the figures which showed that The number of payment cards, which include debit cards, credit cards, term cards and prepaid cards, reached 25.84 billion cards at the end of 2022 and is expected to reach 28.44 billion cards by the end of 2027, according to the Nielsen Foundation report.
For many, payment cards are part of their daily lives and, as the figures show, there is every chance that there is one, two or even three payment cards in the wallet of everyone on the face of the globe. , indicating that cards are gaining strength over cash or other forms of payment.
Why does this happen?
According to banking experts, the whole idea is that people consider a bank card, which is a piece of plastic, with a magnetic stripe, to be more secure than payment methods by phone, or other forms virtual payment. one of the biggest hurdles that causes people to resist paying by phone because they think having their phone stolen will put their money at risk.
Can 4 numbers protect our money?
Payment cards of all kinds are considered a safe and easy way in daily transactions, such as grocery shopping, refueling and withdrawing cash from ATMs, and they are gaining trust of their users even if they are protected by a secret code composed of only four digits, whereas some banks rely on issuing bank cards protected by a secret code of 6 digits.
Faced with this great confidence that users place in bank cards as a means of payment, the question remains: can only 4 secret numbers ensure the protection of our money?
The secret code is a widespread international standard for payment cards
Randa Bdeir, deputy general manager and head of electronic payment solutions and card technology department at Credit Libanais, said in an interview with “Economy Sky News Arabia” that four-digit secret codes are the norm for payment cards, as this issue has become an international standard. It is part of the ISO standard and is widely used in networks and various payment systems, since any change to this standard requires significant coordination and changes in the global infrastructure, noting that the first reason is that most numbers bank card secrets consisting of 4 digits and no more. It’s easy to remember, and nothing else.
Other elements added to the secret code to protect the cards
According to Badir, the secret code, consisting of 4 or 6 digits, offers a reasonable level of security, but it is not the only security measure in place to protect payment card transactions. These codes alone cannot create an impenetrable level of security. , and therefore payment cards have several elements: protections such as locking the card after several incorrect attempts to enter the PIN code, and the possibility of detecting attempts to guess the PIN code, which are techniques used by attackers to withdraw money from bank cards.
Adopt advanced security measures to protect people’s money
Bdeir reveals that with the developing threat landscape, the financial industry continues to adopt advanced security measures to improve the protection of people’s money via bank cards, such as Chip-and-PIN EMV technology which uses a chip embedded in the card to authenticate transactions, in addition to biometric authentication technology, which uses features. associated technologies and best practices.
The Latest Payment Card Fraud Methods
Randa Bedair, Head of Electronic Payment Solutions and Card Technology Department at Lebanese Credit Bank, reveals in his interview with “Economy Sky News Arabia” that the latest credit card fraud methods start with card seizure, through phishing and social engineering, to illegal account seizure and artificial identity theft, noting that entities that issue bank cards constantly monitor what is happening on market, to provide tools that combat suspicious behavior and ensure enhanced due diligence.
Read the Latest World News Today on The Eastern Herald.
