P3 Frequently Asked Questions

Request for Information

General Contact

Products - Data Personalisation Preparation

P3™: Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Smart Card?
A card with an embedded computer chip which may perform one or a number of functions ranging from basic information storage to securing financial transactions.

What are the benefits of Smart cards?
Smart cards provide the added security required to combat credit card fraud. This is achieved through the use of secure cryptographic keys which lock information onto the chip of the card ensuring that only authorized organizations can access the information.

What is EMV?
EMV is a technical standard for financial smart card.
Europay, MasterCard and Visa worked jointly to develop specifications that define a set of requirements to ensure interoperability between chip cards and terminals on a global basis, regardless of the manufacturer, the financial institution, or where the card is used.

How does P3™ help issuing banks migrate to EMV smart cards?
P3™ is an easy route to smart card migration because it provides all the cryptographic data required to move smart cards with minimal impact on the issuing banks host system. P3™ takes a file of cardholder data records, usually the same one that the banks were creating to issue magnetic stripe cards, and processes each record to produce the additional data required for smart cards. It then creates an output file containing data which can be loaded onto the chip.

What is personalisation?
Personalization is the process that takes blank cards and adds your personal details, such as account number and name, to the card. Your details are also added to the magnetic stripe and in the case of smart cards to the chip on the card as well.

Who buys P3™ ?
P3™ is sold to card-issuing banks that need to generate the extra data required for smart cards, or to companies known as bureaus, which card-issuing banks sometimes use to personalize their cards.

What is a multi application smart card?
A card capable of holding multiple applications personalized for individual cardholders.

What is GlobalPlatform?
GlobalPlatform is a cross-industry membership organization created to advance standards for multiple application smart card growth. It combines the interests of smart card issuers, vendors, industry groups, public entities, and technology suppliers to define requirements and technology standards for multiple application smart cards.

Brochure

Download Acrobat

Top of page

3DES encryption ¬ advanced encryption standard ¬ aes encryption ¬bulk encryption ¬ e3 security ¬ fips 140 ¬ gigabit ethernet encryption ¬ ipsec ¬ layer 2 encryption security ¬ layer 3 encryption security ¬ OC12 encryption security ¬ OC192 encryption security ¬ OC3 encryption security ¬ OC48 encryption security ¬ public key infrastructure ¬ scada ¬ sdh encryption ¬ sonet ¬ sonet encryption ¬ sonet encryptors ¬ sonet sdh encryption ¬ t3 encryption ¬ scada ¬