Why Walmart’s Lawsuit Over Chip Cards Is Important To Consumers

What if I told you that two of America’s biggest and most profitable corporations are about to go toe-to-toe in court over credit card security and the case could actually be decided by a jury of consumers? Recently, Walmart, the country’s largest brick-and-mortar retailer filed a lawsuit against VISA, the country’s largest credit card issuer, for requiring the retail giant to allow customers to use signatures when paying with their chip-based cards as opposed to more secure PIN numbers. And if Walmart has its way, the case will be decided by a jury of the very American consumers that are most affected by credit card fraud.

The rollout of chip-enabled cards last year came with promise of increased security and gave consumers the feeling that credit card protections in the U.S. were finally catching up with the 21st century. But while the chip-enabled cards being issued now are considerably more secure than the magnetic stripe cards they are replacing, the cards still leave Americans unnecessarily vulnerable to fraud. Read more at Forbes.