If you haven't gotten a new credit card with an embedded chip in the mail, you should be getting one any day now. The new technology is designed to protect you from identity theft and hacking.
Major retailers have been plagued by hackers, but a little square of silver, could keep you from becoming a victim, especially as we head into the holiday season.
"I'm much more comfortable with a chipped card I've had to replace credit cards a few times," Kurtz said.
Carolyn Kurtz knows what it's like to have her credit card information stolen, so she's happy to ditch magnetic stripes to metal chips.
"I like I like to put everything on a credit card I like to keep track so I can do that and not have to worry," Kurtz said.
Credit cards will now be "EMV," which means Europay, MasterCard and Visa and the chips will protect your personal information.
"When you use the chip embedded card it creates a unique transaction ID every time so even if someone hacks or steals that information, they cannot duplicate it," Dipayan Biswas, professor of marketing at USF, said.
Biswas said hackers could still copy down card numbers, but devices like skimmers won't be able to copy your credit card information.
"If you use a device to capture the transaction you cannot replicate it with like other credit cards or create fake credit cards," Biswas said.
These chips also shift responsibility from credit card companies onto retailers. Stores have to provide the new chip reading machines by the beginning of October.
"So if there is like a theft a credit card related theft and someone is using the old magnetic stripe he's got a MasterCard and banks have their hands off," Biswas said.
Target stores are already using their chip-reading machines, but stores will be responsible for any hacks, if they haven't started using these machines by October 1.
