For best protection, Ozancin recommends two-factor authentication3: adding an additional security mechanism to the password one such as a smart card or an encryption key pair.

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The best design for a mobile credit-card reader is to embed the encryption function into the actual magnetic stripe hardware.

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Whenever credit-card numbers are in play, encryption is obviously a must.

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Some use encryption (of the sort used to protect charge card numbers) to thwart the censors.

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Providing greater security than available on other devices, it includes best-in-class, end-to-end encryption that protects a customer's sensitive credit card data from the moment a card is swiped.

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There's also a freshened up UI look, a Download Manager App, user-definable App Groups, encryption for data both on the device and its SD card, improvements in battery life while using WiFi and Bluetooth, and the obligatory stability fixes.

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Sony has said that the card numbers would be hard to decipher due an encryption, but experts say a hacker would still easily be able to gain control of an account, International Business Times reports.

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If these card numbers were in fact stolen from the Playstation Network, it may be that the encryption Sony says it used was weak, badly implemented, or that the decryption key was included in the stolen data.

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