Europay International, MasterCard International and Visa have jointly developed a new specification outlining how EMV smart cards can be used for secure online payments.
The chip electronic commerce (CEC) specification is an effort to maximize member banks' investments in chip infrastructure by ensuring EMV smart cards can be used in physical as well as virtual transactions. SETCo, the SET Secure Electronic Transaction protocol organization, assisted in the development of the CEC specifications.
The EMV standard defines a set of requirements that ensures interoperability for credit and debit payment applications between smart cards and terminals worldwide.
The three companies (collectively know as EMVCo) created the new specifications to extend the EMV smart card and terminal standards quickly for Internet commerce.
A computer chip that stores unique user identification and authentication information, combined with the powerful SET encryption technology provides the EMV smart card with unparalleled end-to-end security. Cardholders, retailers and card issuers are assured that transactions are legitimate and all parties have been authenticated.
"We are delighted to offer our member banks a sophisticated payment solution that
will certainly help unleash the potential of Internet-based e-commerce," said Olivier Stoica, E-Commerce Manager at Europay International. " Chip cards and SET will provide consumers with the peace of mind they need to shop safely on the web. Chip payments are a key enabler to jump-start the e-commerce market, especially in Europe
where most chip cards are issued today."
The technical specifications are publicly available on the EMVCo website at: www.emvco.com and on the SETCo website at: www.setco.org.