My Merchant Account Blog

Card Verification Value - Card Verification Code - Card Identification Number

Friday, January 08, 2010

So what's the difference between Card Verification Value (CVV), Card Verification Value 2 (CVV2), Card Verification Code (CVC), Card Verification Code 2 (CVC2), and Card Identification Number (CID)?  To one extent, nothing - especially when it comes to American Express and Discover Card - these card associations rely on the CID.

CVV / CVV2

The card association, Visa, uses this term to identify the 3-digit number, usually found on the back of the card.  Visa refers to this 3-digit number on swiped transactions, when the data is collected via a POS terminal.  Visa refers to this 3-digit as CVV2 when it is used in card-not-present environments, i.e. Internet or Telephone transactions (Vetting the Transaction - Card Verification Value or Card Identification Number).

CVC / CVC2

MasterCard (and Cirrus / Maestro branded cards) use this term to refer to the 3-digit number.  Just like Visa, CVC (also known as CVC1) is stored on the magnetic stripe and is read when a merchant swipes the card.  CVC2 is the 3-digit number usually found on the back of the MasterCard on the signature panel and is usually used to help prevent fraudulent transactions on Internet and Telephone transactions (Vetting the Transaction - Card Verification Value or Card Identification Number).

CID

Discover Card and American Express refer to this number as a CID.   Of course, it cannot be as simple as that.

American Express

American Express uses a 4-digit number, found on the front of the American Express card and printed above the account number (not below).  American Express might also refer to this number as 4DBC.

Discover Card

The CID on the Discover Card is pretty much the same as Visa / MasterCard - it is a 3-digit number found on the back of the card.

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