Anyone else having problems with chip cards?

[syngirl]

The past couple of days I've been having problems with my Visa chip credit card. It's Canadian issued. Until recently everyone just swiped it here, but the past few day in a variety of shops they've ttried to use it as a chip card and it was denied 3 out of 4 times. I think the problem is either with the machines, or with the people not knowing how to use the machines, since last night at Solar shopping I was able to use no problem. The other times they haven't even been able to get the transaction to the point of me entering my PIN before the transaction is cancelled -- I think it is a problem with the Posdata machines or something...

just would be reassuring to know if others are encountering problems. Obviously i'll be double-checking my statements online the next few days just to make sure nothing odd pops up.

 

[Greg2231]

The past couple of days I've been having problems with my Visa chip credit card. It's Canadian issued. Until recently everyone just swiped it here, but the past few day in a variety of shops they've ttried to use it as a chip card and it was denied 3 out of 4 times. I think the problem is either with the machines, or with the people not knowing how to use the machines, since last night at Solar shopping I was able to use no problem. The other times they haven't even been able to get the transaction to the point of me entering my PIN before the transaction is cancelled -- I think it is a problem with the Posdata machines or something...

just would be reassuring to know if others are encountering problems. Obviously i'll be double-checking my statements online the next few days just to make sure nothing odd pops up.

I have seen the same problem a couple times recently at my regular Starbucks when people try and use Chip cards they are not able to process them, so it isnt only you.

Greg

 

[Rich One]

You are not alone, many tourists facing similar problems in Europe..... good luck

http://money.msn.com/credit-cards/new-credit-cards-make-travel-harder-weston.aspx

 

[John.St]

The two most common problems with chip card are

1. dirty card reader.
2. chip damaged because the card is lying loose in a pocket.

add the problem described in the article Rich One links to above: US (and Canadian?) cards using last century technology.

 

[rrptownley]

My UK Visa credit card failed me for the first time ever yesterday in Easy, Palermo.

They swiped it and after a couple of failed attempts the chap announced, "ah! It's a chip."
I indifferently urged another try, to no avail. The supervisor was called, who immediately announced the same, "Ah! chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip" etc...
I became a little paranoid at this preoccupation over the chip after 5 years without precedent, until directed to a cash machine where I succeeded to find a form of payment.

I brushed it off as one-off, but your post made me think otherwise. Maybe our fancy northern hemisphere chips have become void.

 

[genialf]

It's happened to me a couple of times with my mexican chip card, Hasn't happened for awhile though.

 

[syngirl]

In the past couple of days it has failed in Farmacity and in Carnes Cara Negra (specialty meat shop on Campos) and been fine in Kevingston and Disco. I put the failure down to machine or lack of knowledge how to process -- in the carniceria it was the machine/network, because even with my local card, the machine froze, he had to reboot it and then it went through -- so probably after he rebooted had I given him the chip card it would have passed. In Kevingston the guy knew exactly the process, in Farmacity the guy was trying to find another staff memeber who knew how to do it, and no one could help. Disco they have some other method they do it, some card of the companies that the swipe after swiping yours, you don't PIN in your number or anything.

 

[AngelinBA]

I don't know if my NZ credit card is a chip one (will have to check - never bothered looking at it that closely) but since I received my new one it has not worked in Argentine machines at all.
The bank in NZ says that the problem is an incompatibility between the machines used in Latin America and the technology used on the new cards. Something about how when the card is swiped, it doesn't read all of the information on the magnetic strip.
They also said this was something they were aware of and were requesting that Latin American card processing companies fix it, but there was no easy answer at the moment. She suggested I ask retailers to manually process my credit card transaction. I haven't been brave enough to try asking anyone that so I haven't used the card in a while.

 

[PhilinBSAS]

I've heard its due to a virus infection in the system

Check the web for:

trojan.backdoor.openconnection.exploit.worm.afip

 

[syngirl]

I don't know if my NZ credit card is a chip one (will have to check - never bothered looking at it that closely) but since I received my new one it has not worked in Argentine machines at all.
The bank in NZ says that the problem is an incompatibility between the machines used in Latin America and the technology used on the new cards. Something about how when the card is swiped, it doesn't read all of the information on the magnetic strip.
They also said this was something they were aware of and were requesting that Latin American card processing companies fix it, but there was no easy answer at the moment. She suggested I ask retailers to manually process my credit card transaction. I haven't been brave enough to try asking anyone that so I haven't used the card in a while.

It's pretty easy to tell if it's a chip -- there's a little symbol that looks kind of like the Wi-Fi symbol, and, haha, there's a chip on the front of the card. If your card is all plastic, no chip. New debit cards usually have the same chip technology too.