US EMV Migration May Be Losing Steam

While the deadline for the impeding EMV migration looms, only one in 10 Americans reported receiving chip-enabled cards in a recent poll.

According to a recent survey of 1,004 people conducted by GfK Public Affairs for Associated Press, roughly 10 percent have received a credit card or debit card with a chip, Finextra reported late last week.

The survey results show the major shift from mag-stripe to EMV in the U.S. may have an even longer way to go before the Oct. 2015 deadline.

Of those respondents who received a chip-enabled card, only 35 percent confirmed actually using their card in a chip card reader, while 30 percent admitted they were unsure exactly how to use the new card.

As of February, nearly 95 percent of payment terminals in Western Europe accepted EMV cards. In the U.S., however, just 14 percent of the 11.8 million operating terminals were EMV-compatible, putting the nation in last place for EMV adoption and at the greatest risk for fraud.

In 2014, the U.S. accounted for nearly half of all global gross losses on cards, Finextra confirmed.

Card issuers in the U.S. were hit hard by counterfeiting losses last year, reportedly losing $3.89 billion due to counterfeiting.

The effects of data breaches, which contributed to millions of stolen card numbers and cardholder identification information being made widely available, were a main driver of this particular type of card fraud.

The poll confirmed consumers are concerned about the country’s fraud risk and the ability for retailers to protect their information.

Almost 40 percent of those surveyed expressed extreme or high concern about the security of their personal information when shopping in-store, which jumped to 45 percent for online purchases.

While the concern is there, the education surrounding the importance and need of EMV might still be lacking.

Nearly 46 percent of respondents disclosed not truly understanding why chip cards are being introduced, while 22 percent communicated doubt that the move will make any improvements when it comes to payments security.

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