Dynamic Emulated Magnetic Stripe Data for Legacy POS Compatibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Many merchants and payment account issuer financial institutions lack NFC-enabled point of sale terminals, preventing consumers with contactless payment devices from conducting secure magnetic stripe card transactions, as existing systems are not configured to process contactless payment transactions without significant changes to legacy systems.
Innovation Solution
A proximity payment device, such as a mobile device, generates dynamic data to emulate a magnetic stripe payment card, using Track 1 and Track 2 data to conduct transactions, allowing secure magnetic stripe card transactions without requiring significant changes to legacy systems or communications interfaces, enabling secure transactions even at merchants with only magnetic stripe acceptance systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If NFC-enabled point of sale terminals are deployed to process contactless payment transactions, then transaction security and convenience are improved, but system complexity and infrastructure costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a copy of magnetic stripe card data (Track 1 and Track 2 data) within the proximity payment device. This copied magnetic stripe data allows the device to emulate a physical magnetic stripe card, enabling it to transmit card information through a magnetic stripe reader without requiring the reader to be NFC-enabled. This copying approach maintains security while avoiding the need for complex NFC infrastructure changes.
2Ease of operation
If NFC infrastructure is upgraded to support contactless payments, then payment convenience is improved, but compatibility with existing magnetic stripe systems is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The proximity payment device is designed with multi-functionality, capable of both storing NFC payment credentials and emulating magnetic stripe card data. This allows the single device to work with both NFC-enabled terminals and traditional magnetic stripe readers, maintaining broad system compatibility while providing convenient contactless payment options where available.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a magnetic stripe reader as an intermediary device that can read the emulated magnetic stripe data from the proximity payment device. This intermediary approach allows seamless transactions at traditional magnetic stripe terminals without requiring them to be upgraded to NFC technology, thus maintaining backward compatibility.
3Reliability
If dynamic data generation is implemented in the proximity payment device, then transaction security is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The magnetic stripe data (Track 1 and Track 2) is pre-loaded into the proximity payment device during setup or enrollment. This preliminary action allows the device to quickly emulate magnetic stripe cards without needing to generate or process complex data in real-time during transactions, thereby enhancing security while minimizing the increase in device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for enabling a proximity payment device to generate dynamic data for securely conducting a transaction by emulating a magnetic stripe payment card. In an embodiment, a mobile device processor transmits information to a digital enablement service computer to activate a simulated magnetic stripe payment wallet application stored in the mobile device. The mobile device then receives one or more cryptographic keys, generates an unpredictable number (UN), generates dynamic CVC3 data based on the UN, and then assembles emulated magnetic stripe data. During initiation of a purchase transaction, the mobile device processor transmits the emulated magnetic stripe data to a communications interface associated with a merchant device.