Understanding your credit card's card identification number

By Jeremy M. Simon

Credit card transactions where the merchant is unable to physically see the credit card in your possession (such as with payments over the Internet or by phone) often require a short numerical code usually found on the back of the card.  Have you ever stopped to wonder what that number is and why it is requested?

See the story, "Anatomy of a credit card" for the answer.

Published: August 8, 2006

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