eli5 How did Credit/Debit Cards work before Chip & Pin Machines?
In: 64
There was a version before all of the other comments in this thread.
Wikipedia seems conflicted on dates:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheque_guarantee_card –
> The first cheque guarantee card scheme was introduced in the United Kingdom in 1965.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheque –
> In 1969 cheque guarantee cards were introduced in several countries, allowing a retailer to confirm that a cheque would be honored when used at a point of sale. The drawer would sign the cheque in front of the retailer, who would compare the signature to the signature on the card and then write the cheque-guarantee-card number on the back of the cheque.
i.e. originally it was a card separate to the chequebook that had your signature on it already.
HSBC claims it was the first bank to do so, in 1966: https://www.about.hsbc.co.uk/hsbc-uk/history-timeline
They even have an image of their original card. Small numbers! https://www.about.hsbc.co.uk/-/media/uk/images/hsbc-in-the-uk/timeline/cheque-guarantee-cards.jpg
I count 6+ different generations of security on the cards we use today, an incredible lasting design?
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