I have the Mag Stripe reader for my phone, do I need the reader for Chip Cards as well?

[jimxlr8]

I have Mag Stripe reader for my phone, do I need the reader for Chip Cards as well?

[ThierrLRC]

Legally nothing forces you to switch to a card reader. However, Congress passed a law shifting liability from card processing companies to business owners in case of fraud with a chip card as of October 1st 2015. That means if you swipe a fraudulent counterfit card that has a chip, you will be responsible for the loss. Soon there will only be chip cards. I would say that eventually you will need a chip reader. Also in a few years (2 or 3 depending on who you talk to) signatures will be replaced by PIN on all cards just like the rest of the world. I'm not sure if you'll still be able to swipe a card when that comes around. The chip readers work pretty well so that's not a big deal.

[Sean]

@ThierrLRC - Great explanation! 👍🏻

@jimxlr8 - You can also check out more details on this page: https://squareup.com/emv​​​​​​​.

[Redlight2015]

I would reccomend it as it makes it so that way you would be protected from fraud if someone gives you a fradulent card.

[Sean]

@Redlight2015 - Great addition! It is definitely a good idea to keep yourself protected by picking up a chip card reader.