Originally Posted by
kayanco
Hey,
Thanks. I want to understand this a bit better. Can you please explain (or point me to some resource with the answer)?
Lots of references throughout the thread. While FT's search function is alright, the wiki has some great information.
How did you figure it's offline PIN?
Since you said it's hard-coded onto the card and can't be cahnged. Basically, offline means the PIN is stored on the card itself. When purchasing, the terminal checks the card to see if the PIN you entered matches what's saved on the card. "Offline" since it doesn't need to connect to a network to authenticate. Frequent in France, some places in Europe, (rural areas especially,) and on-board flights with no data connectivity. ("Online" means the PIN is stored by the bank in their server, and the terminal connects to their server to see if the PIN you entered matches what's saved in the network.)
And since you say it's offline, does that mean PenFed won't support online terminal pin verification??
I have no idea whether all terminals support offline. Some only support offline and not online. But in theory, there's no reason why a terminal (that supports online PIN) shouldn't be able to also support offline - it's a matter of checking the card instead of the network, which requires no additional infrastructure. But I'm not an expert, so someone may correct me on this.
Also, USAA say we CAN change the pin. This is new, last year we couldn't change the pin. But PenFed can't change the pin. What does this mean? And what's better or more broad usage?
Being able to change a PIN doesn't necessarily make it online. If you can change it, but only in a terminal, then it's still offline. You may even be able to change it, but you would need to insert your card for that to update. Not being able to change it does indicate that it's offline.