Beyond Cards and Terminals: Considerations for Testing Host-to-Host EMV Processing

Taking a Look at the EMV Transaction Flow

For organizations accustomed to processing magnetic stripe card transactions, initially the addition of EMV messages may not seem like a substantial change. However, there are significant differences in card validation, message encryption, message flow, as well as some expanded back-end batch requirements. As an Acquirer, you need to develop the required ATM and POS terminal configurations (for EMV card acceptance); and as an Issuer or Processor, you may need to generate and validate Issuer scripts. Similarly, Merchant Acquirers might need to develop POS configurations for their terminals. If your organization acts as an Interchange, Gateway, or Switch, your primary concerns may be message mapping and validation.

The overview of the EMV transaction flow that follows will introduce you to many of these changes.

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