Automated Robotic Retail Financial System Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complexity of financial transactions involving multiple actors makes it difficult to test retail financial systems, as retailers lack access to the necessary information for authorization, and banks are hesitant to provide this information due to security and privacy concerns.
Innovation Solution
An automated robotic testing system that uses real credit cards to interact with a point-of-sale terminal and an external banking institution, allowing for the simulation of transactions without requiring sensitive authorization information, thereby enabling thorough testing of the retail financial system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If real credit cards are used for testing, then testing comprehensiveness is improved, but security risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates and uses test cards that are functional copies of real credit cards for testing purposes. These test cards replicate the appearance and magnetic stripe data of real cards but are controlled and tracked by the testing system, allowing comprehensive testing without using actual customer cards.
Solution Approach 2:
The testing system acts as an intermediary between the test environment and the financial network. It intercepts and validates all card transactions, ensuring that only authorized test cards can communicate with the financial network, thus preventing unauthorized access while maintaining testing effectiveness.
2Productivity
If automated robotic testing is implemented, then testing efficiency is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic testing system is designed as a multi-functional platform that can perform various testing operations including card retrieval, card presentation to terminals, transaction monitoring, and result analysis. This universal system replaces multiple separate testing tools and manual processes with a single integrated solution.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically retrieves cards from the library, presents them to terminals, monitors transactions, and logs results without requiring manual intervention for each testing step. The robotic arm and control system work autonomously to execute complete testing cycles.
3Reliability
If comprehensive card testing is performed, then transaction security is improved, but information access requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential card information needed for testing from the cards themselves (via magnetic stripe or chip reading), rather than requiring access to sensitive cardholder data or authorization information. The testing is performed using publicly available card details that can be read from the card surface.
Data Source
AI summary
In some embodiments, apparatuses and methods are provided herein useful to testing retail financial system transactions. In some embodiments, a system comprises an automated robotic testing device configured to retrieve a selected card from a physical media library, interact, via the selected card, with a point-of-sale terminal, the point-of-sale terminal configured to receive from the selected card, information associated with the selected card, and transmit, to an external banking institution, the information, and a control circuit configured to determine the selected card, transmit, to the automated robotic testing device, the indication of the selected card, receive one of an authorization and a lack of authorization, in response to receipt of 1) authorization, cause the transaction to be completed, and 2) the lack of authorization, cause the transaction to be voided, determine whether a test associated with the transaction was successful, and log an indication of whether the test was successful.