>>>>>> I wonder, however, if someone from Europe comes to the US and tried to use their CC with a chip; will it work here?
>>>>
>>>>Yep. Tragically the chipped ones aren't that safe either: you can read the RF from at least 2 feet away using hardware bought from Ebay and use downloaded PC software to crack it in seconds. Some people now put their CC in special cases to avoid this- check out "credit card RF" on Ebay. FWIW, most of the chip public transport systems and business security systems also are compromised. Desfire EV1 still is reasonably safe because it uses AES, but only we paranoids have converted to that.
>>>
>>>I don't know about Europe but good thing that in US you are only liable for $50 of fraudulent charges (by most US bank CCs).
>>
>>trouble is with banking cards - they have the same technology abd there you are only liable ;-)
>
>I am not defending banks but let's face it. The same people who create banking card technologies can then unlock them.

not if using unbackdoored high end crypto on the chip with challenge / response intermingled with the transaction to foil middle men attacks. Then you would need the physical stolen card.

>What I mean to say is that the problem is - crooks!
How to define crooks ? The unneeded / hidden cost of credit card usage general population is ***paying*** is only to a minimal degree due to the amount of embezzeled unrecovarable funds distributed by the CC company. As the market is divided between two giants they can squeeze sellers to pay them kickbacks and also disallow them to charge the customer more / pass such kickbacks to the customer asking to pay via CC. As this is in accord with current law, such parasitic dues are spread among all customers. Clearly not all people working for such parasitic companies are crooks - and those passing laws after long confeences with lobby members will be first to sick defamation lawyers onto others...

>And I have a solution. If someone is caught using a stolen credit card number, cut his/her fingers. Ok, first time, maybe not all, just on one hand.

Agreed that we have become to cuddling making risk/reward ration of crime easier for criminals. But we have allowed to many symbiontic streams with questionable benefit into the economy.