4. Security: Chip and PIN

Many steps have been taken to make any transaction as secure as possible. These include

Chip and PIN

When you get issued a debit or credit card, a couple of days later you will receive a letter containing your 4 digit PIN number (Personal Identification Number). You are told to destroy the letter as soon as you have memorised the PIN and to also not write it down anywhere.

The reason for this secrecy it that the PIN allows you to use the debit or credit card in shops. So it is vital that no-one else knows what it is.

A debit or credit card has an embedded electronic chip that contains the encrypted PIN. You insert the card into a Chip and Pin reader then enter your PIN. If your entry matches the number in the card, the transaction is authorised.

You can change your PIN into a more memorable one by using an ATM (discussed later)