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I've a credit card question


Alpo

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You have your card number. 16 characters, all numerals.

 

Then on the back of the card you have another three character block.

 

Does anyone have a card that this three character block is not all numerals?

 

I just got through paying my phone bill. When it wanted me to enter my phone number the screen showed a 10-digit keypad. When it wanted me to enter my card number, again it was a 10 digit keypad. And when it wanted my zip code it was a 10-digit keypad.

 

But when it wanted those three characters on the back of the card it was the standard keyboard.

 

I have three credit cards. All nine of the characters on the back of the three credit cards are numerals. There are no letters.

 

I'm just puzzled why, for the other things they wanted that were obviously going to be all numerals, it showed me a numeric keypad, but this showed me a QWERTY keypad.

 

So I wonder if there is some card out there that the three characters are letters, or a mix of letters and numerals.

 

Anyone have one like that?

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I have never seen an alpha/numeric “3-character code” on the back of a credit card.  Just 3 numeric digits only.  


In the case you describe, it’s possible some program designer, in collecting requirements for a data entry form, was probably told that the 3-character field had to be alpha/numeric.  Therefore, the programmer designed the field to be just that....alpha/numeric.  So the form throws up the QWERTY alpha/numeric keyboard, rather than a numeric keypad.

 

Cat Brules

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A long time ago, in the UK, when the idea of some sort of verification code for a card not present transaction was first developed, the code was 11 alphanumeric characters.

 

While there is maybe some foreign issuer still using some alpha characters, all of the codes I know of today are either 3 or 4 numeric characters. But I have not looked at PCI-DSS recently.

 

Most likely, though, is that the programmer of the site blew it or included obsolete (alpha) variations. But I do not remember all the details of the Brazilian ELO or China's easy pay systems... And there are other smaller issuers.

 

For the "western" banks, the CVV (CSC, CVC, CDD, etc.) is an encryption of the card number, the expiration, and the issuer's private key.  The result of the encryption is "decimalized" into a 3 or 4 digit number.

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