Smart Card's Definition

Smart card is defined as a card with IC ( integrated circuit ) which planted in it , and the IC is used for information process , and has its own storage media with capacity . Before maybe , you’ve heard about magnetic stripe card which also can be used for transaction . Today this magnetic stripe card much used for ATM card in Indonesia , which also considered as transaction . Smart Card is different with Magnetic Stripe Card which is an old technology .
Magnetic smart card has an easy look characteristic , just see the magnetic ribbon on the card . Meanwhile , IC in the smart card is inside the card or it can be a small chip . Of course by using both mangetic ribbon and IC / chip altogether , the card can be used as smart card and magnetic stripe card . Both magnetic stripe card and smart card keep the information in its own storage media ( magnetic ribbon in magnetic stripe card , IC / chip in smart card ) . To read and write information , we need a card reader or an encoder . Example , you can easily find a reader when you go to an ATM , which has a reader inside it to read the information from the card you insert to it .

It also when you skrecth the card when you do a transaction . Big usement and booming smart card happened in 90’s , when smart card based SIM ( subscriber identify module ) , which also used in GSM cellular . The credit card and debit card used as payment tool by master card , visa , and europay making the smart card become popular in the public . The next development is contacless in smart card . The contacless technology is making the communication with reader by frequences or gennerally known as RFID ( radio frequency identification ) is possible , which making the card and the card do’t have touch directly ( contacless ) .