Back in February the RBZ governor demanded that banks start issuing out EMV compliant cards in a bid to prevent the epidemic that is card cloning. If the banks did comply with this directive, they didn’t make much noise about it. One bank that is bolstering its security is talking about new developments in line with the security on their cards.
Whilst banks have taken their sweet time putting their house in order, CABS is finally following the directive and are currently testing out a more secure chip and pin card which they expect to roll out in the near future:
CABS is in the process of rolling out Chip and Pin cards and currently in a test phase with our Blue Card. Once completed we will implement on all our cards.
CABS Holdings managing director Simon Hammond
Currently, card transactions use a magnetic strip to read and record account data, and a signature is required for purposes of identity verification. The new bank cards will have an embedded computer chip that provides more security.
The Chip-and-PIN specifications are designed to improve the security for face-to-face transactions by providing features that reduce fraud resulting from counterfeit,lost and stolen cards.
This is positive news for CABS card holders who are on the verge of getting cards that are more difficult to clone.
If you’re worried about whether or not these cards will work with existing payment infrastructure, don’t be concerned as last year Mangudya said the infrastructure was already in place:
Currently, over 80% of the card infrastructure in the country is now EMV compliant.
John Mangudya – RBZ Governor
