Inside the Black Hole

American Express cards are the most unique ones issued in the U.S. By that I don’t mean that AmEx’s card programs are all that different from their competitors’. Well, perhaps some of them are, but other issuers have programs that are so similar that you would not be able to tell them apart, unless you saw the brand logos on the terms and conditions disclosure.

The uniqueness of American Express cards can be found in some of the security features on their cards. In this post I will review these features and will explain how to recognize their validity.

American Express Card Security Features

There are several different types of American Express cards and not all of them will display all of the security features listed below, but most of them will:

1. All American Express card account numbers are embossed and begin with “37″ or “34″. This rule applies to all AmEx cards. By comparison, Visa card numbers begin with “4,” MasterCard’s start with “5″ and Discover’s – with “6″.
2. AmEx account numbers are embossed, 15-digit long, with no alterations and spaced in 4, 6 and 5 digits. This is another unique AmEx security feature. Visa, MasterCard and Discover numbers are all 16-digit long and spaced in four groups of four digits.
3. The Card Identification Number (CID) is AmEx’s equivalent to Visa’s CVV2, MasterCard’s CVC 2 and Discover’s CID. Unlike its competitors who all use three-digit numbers and place them on the back of their cards, in or immediately to the right of the signature panel, AmEx’s CID is four-digit long and is printed above the embossed account number on the right or left of the card.
4. The cardholder name is printed in the lower left corner of AmEx cards, just as the competitors do it.
5. The “Member Since” date is embossed to the right of the expiration date. By comparison, Visa, MasterCard and Discover all place the “Member Since” date to the left of the expiration one.
6. The expiration, or “Valid Thru,” date is embossed above the cardholder name field, in the format “mm/yy.”
7. The Centurion image is of course unique to the brand (not to mention trademarked). It is phosphorescent and the words “AMEX” are visible under UV light.
8. Some cards feature a hologram of the Centurion image embedded Into the magnetic stripe.
9. Also uniquely, the account number is printed in the signature field of most AmEx cards and must match the embossed one on front of card and the one printed on the transaction receipt. The competitors only print the last four digits of their card numbers in the signature field.
10. The signature field is located below the magnetic stripe, match as it is on Visa, MasterCard and Discover cards. The words “Cardmember Signature” are printed underneath it.

Again, some AmEx cards will not display all of the above security features. For example, you will not see the Centurion image on American Express Blue cards and there may be other missing features. However, any security features that are present must adhere to the above specifications.

The Takeaway

As you see, AmEx cards are easy to tell apart from cards of the other major brands. More importantly, their security features help you verify each card’s validity. That is, if you are paying attention. You should examine each card presented for payment, while you are awaiting the authorization approval. Make sure all alphanumeric digits are clear and even and treat any fuzziness as a sign that the card may have been tampered with. The same applies to cards where the Centurion is not phosphorescent or the hologram image is not changing as you are changing the angle at which you are viewing it. Of course, the signature on the card must match the one on the sales receipt.

If you become suspicious of either the card or the cardholder’s behavior, you should make a Code 10 call to your payment processing provider’s authorization center and follow their instructions on how to proceed with the transaction.

Learn how to lower your card acceptance cost

Learn how to accept credit and debit cards at the lowest processing costs. The Payment Card Acceptance kit contains a video and an e-book:

• Video – Card Acceptance Best Practices for Lowest Processing Costs (18 min).
• E-Book – Payment Card Acceptance Guide (19 pages).