Online chip and PIN needs industry buy-in to succeed

Payments body Apacs is urging providers to prepare for chip and pin technology being used at home

UK payments association Apacs has announced that it expects to oversee the rollout of chip and PIN technology for use in online transactions at home later this year. But experts have warned that the system would lack stakeholder buy-in without a concrete deadline.

Chip and PIN, which celebrated its first anniversary last week, helped reduce total card fraud by five percent in the first six months of 2006, according to Apacs. The new online scheme will see two-factor authentication devices installed in homes to secure the web payment process. The devices will combine chip and PIN with Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode technology.

"The difference is that after accepting your PIN, the card reader generates a one-time passcode, which will be useless for future transactions if a criminal intercepts it," said an Apacs spokesman.

But experts were dubious about the current proposals.

Nathan Jackson, managing director of e-payments processor CyberSource, warned that retailers and banks could reach a stalemate over who foots the bill for the readers.

David Porter of security consultancy Detica argued that an implementation deadline, as seen with the high street chip and PIN rollout, could give the initiative a better chance of success. "It must be realistic otherwise continual slippage will cast doubt on the whole exercise," he added.

Questions have also been raised over support for the Visa and MasterCard online payment schemes. Currently not all debit cards are covered and few retailers have signed up.