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Insider’s report

on payments

Deadline looms for pay-at-pump

EMV compliance

By Patti Murphy "Given the cost to small businesses [of making the switch],
and given that they're not making much money because
majority of gas station owners today face a dou- people aren't driving much, it seems to me that it would
ble whammy: sagging sales from state-imposed be logical to move the deadline," Peterson said in a recent
state-at-home orders and a looming deadline interview.
A for rendering their pay-at-the-pump devices
EMV compliant. There are workarounds. Sound Payments, for example,
offers a unique retrofit option that ISOs and their merchant
While most card terminals had to be EMV-compliant by level salespeople can resell to independent gas stations.
2015, the card brands gave gas stations five additional years Most gas stations in the United States are independent.
to bring self-attended gas pumps into compliance. Some The solution, at about one-third to one-half the cost of
observers believe the deadline should be extended yet again traditional retrofits, easily integrates with existing POS
for these outdoor devices, but the card companies appear to software, and "takes hours versus weeks to implement,"
be unwilling to relent on the Oct. 1, 2020, deadline. Eric Goldberg, vice president of sales at Sound Payments,
stated in an April 13 episode of the Merchant Sales Podcast
A new report by Thad Peterson, senior analyst at Aite Group, (available at www.greensheet.com/podcasts.php).
offers some perspective on EMV compliance. Nearly one in
four terminals (74 percent) at retail locations (inclusive of RewardsPlus, ExxonMobile's mobile app, puts fraud
in-store gas station locations) had been upgraded to EMV protection in consumers' hands in the form of mobile
technology at year-end 2019. About 63 percent of all card payments. But there's little chance of universal consumer
payments in the United States last year were completed adoption, so ExxonMobile stations still need to invest in
using EMV cards, the report noted. EMV-compliant dispensers. Also, app-based payments
process as costlier card-not-present transactions, Peterson
A 2019 survey of fuel stations by Conexxus, a technology noted in his report.
standards group, found 86 percent had upgraded in-store
terminals to EMV, but just 13 percent had fully deployed the Among gas station owners surveyed by Conexxus, 43
technology at their pumps. One consequence: gas station percent cited cost as the primary reason for not deploying
pumps are now prime targets for fraud, card skimming EMV at their pumps; about the same percentage said they
in particular. Reports of skimmers found at gas pumps weren't convinced the benefits were worth the investment.
appear in local media outlets routinely. The latter group may be convinced otherwise come Oct. 1
when they start facing liability for card fraud tied to their
My debit card was compromised a couple of years ago. I pumps. Conexxus estimates fraud liability associated with
knew immediately the compromise had occurred at a gas non-compliant gas pumps could exceed $450 million this
pump, and I informed my bank. After that, I vowed not year alone. And as more unattended fuel pumps become
to use my debit card at gas pumps unless they were EMV EMV compliant, those that aren't will become all the more
compliant. As for the errant gas station where my card was vulnerable to fraudsters.
skimmed, the pumps still aren't EMV compliant.
These are uncertain times for all businesses. And no
High-cost proposition business wants to take on added expenses, like a technology

With most American adults purchasing fuel on a regular upgrade, in even the best of economic times. But the reality
basis, and about 122,000 gas stations in the United States, is that fraudsters are an opportunistic lot, always on the
by Peterson's estimate, EMV compliance could have a lookout for payment system vulnerabilities they can
significant impact on card fraud. But at what cost? Between exploit. And with most other card-accepting devices now
$30,000 and $80,000 per store, depending upon how many EMV compliant, non-compliant fuel dispensers are and
gas pumps need to be replaced or retrofitted, Peterson will continue to be easy marks for fraudsters.
estimated. And this doesn't include lost revenues from Patti Murphy is senior editor at The Green Sheet and self-described pay-
downtime needed to remove and replace pumps. ments maven of the Fourth Estate. Follow her on Twitter @GS_PayMaven.

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