Using nothing more than your smartphone, a downloaded app, and a cheap card reader costing from $25 to $50, you can take payments anywhere there is a cellular network signal. Where mobile credit card processing really comes into its own is its sheer flexibility. The best POS systems can manage your inventory, ensure you're on top of compliance-related payment regulations, and help your business avoid fines and other administrative costs (such as chargeback fraud), all while offering advanced security features that protect from data theft and cyber breaches. They can even be great for small mom-and-pop shops that are looking to keep their initial costs down, and a tablet running apps on a stand can work in lieu of a till.Ĭredit card readers are the front end to your point of sale (POS) system, which can do much more than simply read cards. You don't need a checkout till, you just need a smartphone or tablet that can run apps to connect with a mobile card reader. This is where mobile card readers come into their own for credit card processing, allowing you to take card payments wirelessly and on the go. There definitely are some card readers available without a tamper switch.Taking card payments is increasingly essential for any modern business, but what happens if you want to sell at a trade fair, set up a market stall or pop-up shop, or swipe a credit card tableside in a restaurant? Opening the device might wipe the key (again, depending on the model). I just now remembered helping with compliance for one company that had mobile card readers - every time they got dropped or ran out of battery they would have to be sent back to the manufacturer to have the keys reprogrammed. There might be some sort of tamper switch on these as well, though. Affixing a skimmer to the inside of the device seems pretty feasible - you just need to tap in before the data is encrypted. Regardless, the devices seem pretty replaceable. Remote access of a credit card terminal to change the keys seems pretty unlikely to be compliant, but it did show up in that first reader (unless I read the specs wrong). That would imply to me that the encryption keys are either remotely programmable by the processing company, or the keys are standardized. >Credit card processing company wanted a boat load of money for a new terminal, found this one here on Amazon for much less. This one has remotely-programmable keys, it seems. There has to be some way for a shop owner to replace the card reader fairly easily - I think generally they are purchased with the encryption keys pre-loaded by the manufacturer, or maybe by the transaction processing company. I've never taken one apart, nor have I really put hands on one - I'm just spitballing the things that seem logical given the little I know about PCI compliance standards.
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