EMV cards — named after the developers of the technology standard, Europay, MasterCard and Visa — are equipped with computer chips designed to provide extra protection against data breaches and other forms of debit and credit card fraud.

LAKELAND — Publix Super Markets has begun installing chip card readers at its stores, joining mega retailers such as Target and Wal-Mart.



“We began installing chip readers at our locations in August and will continue a companywide rollout,” said Maria Brous, Publix spokeswoman, via email. “Publix wants to ensure that our customers have the easiest of all transactions.”



EMV cards — named after the developers of the technology standard, Europay, MasterCard and Visa — are equipped with computer chips designed to provide extra protection against data breaches and other forms of debit and credit card fraud.



On Oct. 1, liability for fraudulent transactions shifted from card issuers to merchants that didn’t have the ability to accept the newer EMV cards.



As a result, the use of EMV cards has surged in the United States.



According to a CreditCards.com survey conducted in March, about 70 percent of U.S. credit cardholders now carry an EMV card. That’s a significant increase from a similar survey conducted by CreditCards.com last September that revealed 60 percent of cardholders did not have an EMV card.



Brous said Publix waited about 10 months to begin its own rollout of chip card readers out of a desire to be thorough.



“We have worked diligently to filter through EMV tests and validations to ensure we have the most seamless transition for our associates and customers,” she said. “Because Publix is methodical about changes that impact our customers, all new applications undergo stringent testing before they are implemented in our stores.”



J. Craig Shearman, vice president of government affairs public relations for the National Retail Federation, said many merchants that were prepared to install chip card readers have been delayed because they couldn’t get certification from card issuers.



“It's time for the bank and the card industry to step up," said Shearman in a CNBC.com article published in April. "Some of (our members) have had to wait months to get anybody to certify their systems.”



Brous declined to give a timetable for the completion of Publix’s chip card reader rollout or provide an estimate of how many stores currently employ the technology. The Southgate location on South Florida Avenue is one location with the new card readers. The company presently has 1,124 stores in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, and North Carolina.



“We are aggressively installing chip readers in our companywide rollout without sacrificing the positive shopping experience of our customers and associates,” she said.



— John Ceballos can be reached at john.ceballos@theledger.com or 863-802-7515.