You may still need to swipe your card this season
You鈥檝e got your new EMV-chipped credit card, part of the industry鈥檚 effort聽.
You鈥檙e ready to聽at a retailer, but the cashier asks you to swipe as usual because the terminal isn鈥檛 ready for your new plastic.
Not all businesses met the credit card industry鈥檚 deadline for accepting EMV cards, and with business owners turning their attention to holiday sales, that鈥檚 unlikely to change anytime soon, an expert says.
Here鈥檚 a rundown of what鈥檚 happening at the checkout and why.
I鈥檓 still swiping my card. What gives?
The deadline for businesses to update their equipment to accept the anti-fraud EMV technology was Oct.聽1, but many have not made the upgrade. As a result, those businesses would be聽聽were committed at their points of sale with a chipped card. Craig Shearman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation, says there are three main reasons why retailers and others haven鈥檛 changed their devices.
The risk of fraud isn鈥檛 equal for all retailers
鈥淭he level of risk of not converting to EMV depends largely on the size of your business and the size of your transactions,鈥� he tells NerdWallet. 鈥淗ackers looking to commit credit card fraud largely go after big businesses, not mom-and-pop shops.鈥�
Small businesses with small transactions, such as a corner deli, don鈥檛 have too much to worry about, he adds. 鈥淭hieves likely aren鈥檛 going to waste a counterfeit card on a cup of coffee or a sandwich,鈥� Shearman says.
It鈥檚 expensive
聽that 鈥渆ach chip card terminal [costs] as much as $2,000 when installation, software and other expenses are included.鈥� With many small-business owners making small profits off their merchandise, they can鈥檛 afford to make the switch until they鈥檙e forced to when their current card readers no longer work. Even for large retailers, those costs add up.
Also, if a business hasn鈥檛 experienced much fraud, it has little incentive to take on the expense of updating its equipment.
New equipment needs approval
Before a retailer can start using EMV-chip readers, the devices must be certified by EMVCo, the organization that manages the EMV process, and by the payment networks the retailer plans to accept. Because larger retailers process more transactions and generate more revenue for the payment networks, they generally get first claim to certifiers until the process is complete.
Some large retailers still ask you to swipe because they鈥檙e struggling to make it through the certification process, Shearman says. And 鈥渆ven if small retailers make the move, they鈥檙e far down on the list of getting certified,鈥� he notes.
Stores still taking safety measures
If you鈥檙e still swiping your card at some stores, your information is likely just as safe as it was before the EMV deadline. If you鈥檙e shopping at a business that doesn鈥檛 sell big-ticket items, it likely isn鈥檛聽a major target for fraud, so your risk is聽lower.
If you鈥檙e hoping your favorite retailer will make the upgrade before Black Friday, you may be disappointed.
鈥淔or the most part, particularly for small businesses, what they have now is what they鈥檒l have for the holiday season,鈥� Shearman says. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e busy concentrating on their holiday sales and moving as much merchandise as they can.鈥�
He聽adds that you may see retailers compensate by increasing their security in other ways, including asking you for a picture ID, checking the signature on the back of your card and checking the card itself to detect a counterfeit.
If you鈥檙e still unsure, take your card security into your own hands by checking the card reader to make sure someone hasn鈥檛聽. As you use your card during the holiday season, check your account statements often for unauthorized charges. If that still doesn鈥檛 assuage your concern, you can avoid the risk entirely by using cash instead.
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