Smart Card – Wiki
Jul 20, 2010 Smart Card
A smart card, chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC), is any pocket-sized card with embedded integrated circuits. There are two broad categories of ICCs. Memory cards contain only non-volatile memory storage components, and perhaps dedicated security logic. Microprocessor cards contain volatile memory and microprocessor components. The card is made of plastic, generally polyvinyl chloride, but sometimes acrylonitrile butadiene styrene or polycarbonate. The card may embed a hologram to prevent counterfeiting. Smart cards may also provide strong security authentication for single sign-on within large organizations.
The following characterizes smart cards:
* Dimensions are normally credit card size. ID-1 of the ISO/IEC 7810 standard defines them as nominally 85.60 by 53.98 millimetres (3.370 × 2.125 in). Another popular size is ID-000 which is nominally 25 by 15 millimetres (0.984 × 0.591 in) (commonly used in SIM cards). Both are 0.76 millimetres (0.030 in) thick.
* Contains a tamper-resistant security system (e.g. a secure cryptoprocessor, secure file system) and provides security services (e.g. protects in-memory information).
* Managed by an administration system which securely interchanges information and configuration settings with the card, including card hotlisting and application data updates.
* Communicates with external services via card reading devices, such as ticket readers, ATMs etc.
[edit] Benefits
Smart cards can be used for identification, authentication, data storage and application processing.[1]
Reader
Contact smart card readers are used as a communications medium between the smart card and a host, e.g. a computer, a point of sale terminal, or a mobile telephone.
Because the chips in financial cards are the same Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) as in mobile phones, programmed differently and embedded in a different piece of PVC, chip manufacturers are building to the more demanding GSM/3G standards. So, for example, although EMV allows a chip card to draw 50 mA from its terminal, cards are normally well below the telephone industry’s 6 mA limit. This allows smaller and cheaper financial card terminals.