There are currently available several technologies which can be used to secure data on a magnetic stripe. Although these technologies work in different ways, they all set out to achieve the same thing – ensure that the data encoded on the stripe is only valid with one card. So if the card is duplicated in some way, the security feature is able to detect the fact that the data is now encoded on the wrong card.

Watermark Magnetics™ from Thorn EMI Secure Science International uses a special magnetic stripe with a number permanently encoded into the oxide. The number is created during the manufacturing process of the stripe and is permanently locked into the stripe. The process uses a special reader to read and verify the presence of the number. The number is encoded across the width of the stripe but it allows for conventional data to be encoded over the top of the Watermark number. During the encode process the data is linked to the Watermark number in some way. Then during the read process, both the Watermark number and the conventional data are read and the link is verified.

ValuGard® from Rand McNally also uses the physical properties of the stripe to ensure that no duplication or counterfeiting takes place. Unlike Watermark Magnetics which uses a physical change encoded into the stripe, ValuGard uses the inherent properties of the stripe. A read head analyzes the physical properties of the stripe (alignment, noise et.) and a value is encoded on the stripe to represent the properties. This “security” value is calculated every time the stripe is read and is compared to the value encoded on the stripe, to ensure that it is the same document.

Holomagnetics from American BankNote Holographics uses a series of machine-readable holographic images over the magnetic stripe. The pattern of images on each stripe is unique, based on the registration of the images from the edge. The pattern is read and converted to a numerical code and stored on the magnetic stripe. As with the other security systems, the numerical code is re-calculated each time the card is read and compared to the value encoded on the stripe.

XSec® from Xtec, Inc. uses the physical properties of the magnetic stripe to derive its security. The technology concentrates on the inherent jitter of the magnetic data on the card. The encoding is analyzed and a value is then encoded on to the magnetic stripe. This value is checked each time the card is read to ensure the card is not a counterfeit.

XiShield™ from Xico, Inc uses a permanent infrared optics pattern concealed within the card during its manufacture to provide the security. As each individual card has a unique optical pattern associated with it, the magnetic stripe data and the optical pattern can be linked to provide the security needed.

Posted with Steve Halliday permission, president of High Tech Aid.