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I got the results back from my two Mastodon polls about credit/debit cards and PANs (Primary Account Numbers)
Your most used credit/debit card has…
41% Embossed account number on the front
22% Unembossed account number on the front
28% Account number on the back
9% No account number displayed on the card at all
Only 32 people voted so probably not truly representative but this is still interesting as it implies that card companies are further along with the transition than I had expected. Already there are (perhaps) more cards that are no longer embossed out there, than those that are. Furthermore, given the time to replace cards (some companies take 5+ years), perhaps no company (or very few) is making embossed cards any longer? Also of those unembossed cards, the majority already have their numbers hidden from the front of the card (at the very least).
Have you memorised a debit/credit card number?
41% Yes
44% No
15% Maybe I should
66 people replied. Here the interesting thing for me is the number of people who have memorised their details is much higher than I had expected. Though in hindsight perhaps I should have expected this. Many people still do not use password managers and other software that remembers and autofills financial details on the web, or even if they do they might have a lot of transactions where they give cards details over the phone in a call (e.g. takeaway orders from a local restaurant without an app or website ordering system). In such cases you are forced to type or speak the numbers again and again. I guess this will cause you to remember them, without even having to actively try. Also, card numbers do not usually change over time, unless they are reported lost or you change provider. Thus even those using software to autofill credentials on websites now, may have learnt these numbers years ago. Indeed one reply (from @linnefaulk@toot.bike) stated,
I still know my Amex # but haven’t had the account in over 10 years!
Based on these small polls I would imagine that soon, almost no card companies will list numbers on the cards. For in person transactions you do not need them and there is a clear security downside in having the numbers listed. For online transactions software will increasingly handle the remembering and exchange of numbers for you. Even if you actively avoid such software, many people could recall these numbers with a little effort and for those that cannot writing them down is no less secure than having them on the the card itself. In fact it is probably more secure, especially if you do not carry these numbers with you in your wallet. And even if you did, a thief is more likely to overlook a hand written note than those printed on cards.
The progression to numberless credit/debit cards
I have credit card nostalgia. WTF? [JBanana]
Wise debit card and corporate green washing
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