Smart Card Advantages. What are the advantages of smart cards?

Compared to conventional data transmission devices such as magnetic-stripe cards, smart cards offer enhanced security, convenience and economic benefits. In addition, smart card-based systems are highly configurable to suit individual needs. Finally, the multi functionality as

payment, application and networking devices renders a smart card as a perfect user interface in a mobile, networked economy.

Security

Smart cards incorporate encryption and authentication technologies that can implement issuer's and user's requirements for the highest degree of security. Using encryption, contents and data can be securely transferred via wired and wireless networks. Coupled with biometric

authentication methods which rely on personal physical attributes, smart cards are used in distributing government welfare payments in order to reduce frauds and abuse. Health care cards allow doctors to access and manage patient's medical records and insurance information without compromising privacy. Personalized network access cards allow safer and easier management of diverse networks without a significant costs for access control.

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English: Armed Forces EZpay smart card

Convenience

Smart cards will combine paper, plastic and magnetic cards used for identification, automatic teller machines, copiers, toll collection, pay phones, health care and welfare administration. Universities, firms and governments rely on smart identification cards since they can contain more detailed data and enable many services to be integrated. Health care cards, for example, reduce document processing costs by allowing immediate access to personalized patient information stored in smart cards. Most other smart card uses combine identification function

with specialized purposes as in military PX cards, government's Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, and university ID cards that are also used to pay for food and photocopies.

Economic Benefits

Smart cards reduce transaction costs by eliminating paper and paper handling costs in hospitals and government benefit payment programs. Contact and contact less toll payment cards streamline toll collection procedures, reducing labor costs as well as delays caused...