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CONCERNS THAT HINDER EMV SMARTCARD ACCEPTANCE
Computerworld targets five issues that could slow down U.S. adoption of EMV smartcards.
February 12, 2014
FRAMINGHAM, Mass. – Switching U.S. payment technology to the Europay MasterCard Visa (EMV) smartcard system might take more time than anticipated and provide less security than currently proposed, Computerworld reports. Following the recent spat of massive data violations at Neiman Marcus, Michaels and Target, many experts and lawmakers have touted the EMV standards as a solution to such security breaches.
The publication lists five issues that could hamper the switch to EMV smartcard standards in the United States. First, changing to EMV would run into the billions of dollars. EMV card readers are priced at hundreds of dollars each. Gray Taylor, executive director of PCATS, said the convenience store and petroleum retail industry would shell out close to $4 billion to change around 800,000 POS systems to accept EMV cards. Across the country, retailers would be upgrading or exchanging roughly 13 million POS systems. “That is a big expense that we are going to have to pass down to the consumer,” said Taylor.
Second, the security return-on-investment isn’t clear. In other words, if retailers invest in EMV technology, their systems still might not be secure enough to prevent massive data breaches. That’s because EMV can be implemented in less secure ways, such as not requiring a PIN, which hasn’t been a mandatory requirement.
“It is not the enhanced security system that retailers have long-called for,” said Brain Dodge, senior vice president of communications at the Retail Industry Leaders Association. “There is an enormous cost with moving systems to EMV. From the retailers’ perspective, the added protection we are getting (from smartcards) is not enough to justify the expense” unless PINs are mandatory.
Third, it’s not just an issue of requiring a PIN. U.S plans for implementing EMV technology would allow magnetic stripes on the card’s back, which weakens the security of a smartcard.
Fourth, time is not on our side. While MasterCard and Visa have set October 2015 as the deadline for moving to EMV payments, it will take much longer to make the wholesale switch. Canada started the change to EMV a decade ago, and still has only around 85% of its POS systems able to accept EMV cards. Banks, too, have been dragging their feet in issuing EMV smartcards. “Visa and MasterCard are hell bent on making us homogenous with the rest of the world. But the fact is that we’re going to be the last guys in on an aging technology,” said Taylor.
Fifth, legal obstacles to EMV smartcards center around the Durbin Amendment, which gave merchants a choice between at least two independent networks for debit card transaction processing. That issue still hasn’t been decided in court, and won’t be until this fall, so retailers can’t move ahead on EMV smartcards for signature debit card and PIN transactions.
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DIVISION RELATING TO AIR QUALITY, CHAPTER 391-3-1
February 10, 2014
CHAPTER 21: DECOMMISSIONING OF STAGE II SYSTEMS
21. Owners or operators of gasoline dispensing facilities subject to the Stage II vapor recovery
control requirements shall fully decommission their Stage II vapor recovery systems in
accordance with the provisions of this subsection.
(i) Beginning May 1, 2014, owners or operators of gasoline dispensing facilities with Stage II
vapor recovery systems may commence decommissioning of those systems. Decommissioning
of the Stage II vapor recovery systems shall be completed no later than April 30, 2016.
(ii) An existing Stage II vapor recovery system shall be decommissioned only in accordance
with the requirements in this Subparagraph.
(I) The entire existing Stage II vapor recovery system shall be fully decommissioned prior to the
Stage II system no longer being operated and maintained as required by this rule and the terms
and conditions of the system’s currently applicable CARB Executive Order and Approval Letters.
(II) The gasoline dispensers connected to the Stage II vapor recovery system shall be taken out
of service prior to the start of decommissioning and shall not be brought back into service to
dispense gasoline until the requirements in this Subparagraph have been met.
(III) If the Stage II vapor recovery system has any liquid-collection points and liquid is present,
the liquid must be removed and disposed of properly. If the liquid-collection point has a tube
leading back to the submersible pump, the tube must be disconnected at the submersible pump,
and the tube sealed properly so that it is vapor tight. A plug must be installed in the vacuum
pump to seal the vacuum port. As an alternative to sealing the tube, the tube may be removed
completely as long as the opening for the tube in the liquid-collection point is sealed so that it is
vapor tight. The liquid-collection point cap shall create a vapor tight seal when placed on the
liquid-collection point.
(IV) If the Stage II vapor recovery system includes a vapor pump for each fueling position, the
vapor pump shall be disabled or removed.
(V) If the Stage II vapor-recovery system includes a centrally-located vacuum pump, the
vacuum-pumping mechanism shall be removed. After removing the vacuum-generating
mechanism, the vapor piping that was attached to the vapor pump must be sealed so that it is
vapor tight.
(VI) The below-grade vapor piping shall be disconnected from the dispenser at a point that is at
or below the level of the base of the dispenser. The below-grade vapor piping shall be properly
sealed so that it is vapor tight.
(VII) The lower end of the vapor piping inside of each dispenser cabinet shall be sealed so that
it is vapor tight.
(VIII) The vapor recovery piping connection at the storage tank shall be disconnected if it can
be disconnected without excavation. If the vapor recovery piping is disconnected at the storage
tank, the dispenser and tank side of the vapor piping shall be sealed so that it is vapor tight.
(IX) A rubber cap held in place by a hose clamp shall not be used to seal the vapor piping for
any of the requirements in this subparagraph.
(X) If Stage II vapor recovery system operating instructions are posted on dispensers, the
operating instructions shall be removed.
(iii) Within 30 calendar days of meeting the requirements in Subparagraph 21.(ii), a pressure
decay test and tie-tank test shall be conducted to insure that the Stage I vapor recovery system
is vapor tight and the storage tank vents are still functional. The pressure decay test shall be
conducted in accordance with and meet the performance requirements in the CARB test
procedure TP-201.3 “Determination of 2 Inch WC Static Pressure Performance of Vapor
Recovery Systems of Dispensing Facilities” adopted on April 12, 1996, and amended on March
17, 1999. The tie-tank test shall be conducted in accordance with and meet the performance
requirements in the CARB test procedure TP201.3C “Determination of Vapor Piping
Connections to Underground Gasoline Storage Tanks” (Tie-Tank Test) adopted on March 17,
1999.
(iv) The gasoline dispensing facility owner or operator shall notify the Division a minimum of five
business days, as defined by the Division, prior to the testing required for the decommissioning
of the Stage II vapor recovery system as specified by Subparagraph 21.(iii). The owner or
operator shall use and complete the notification form provided by the Division.
(v) The gasoline dispensing facility owner or operator shall submit a complete test report
containing the results of the testing required by Subparagraph 21.(iii) within 30 days of the test
date to the Division. The test report form shall be provided by the Division and must be used
and completed in its entirety by the owner or operator. The report shall include results of all
tests conducted for decommissioning of the Stage II vapor recovery system.
(vi) The gasoline dispensing facility owner or operator shall maintain the following records on
site for two years after decommissioning:
(I) Contracts and invoices associated with decommissioning of the Stage II vapor recovery
system.
(II) Contracts, invoices, and test results for required testing for decommissioning of the Stage II
vapor recovery system.
(vii) A gasoline dispensing facility is considered fully decommissioned once the following
conditions have been met:
(I) All of the requirements in Subparagraph 21.(ii) have been met;
(II) All tests required in Subparagraph 21.(iii) have been conducted and performance
requirements met; and
(III) Test report(s) as required in Subparagraph 21.(v) have been submitted to and approved by
the Division.