Do you know what the numbers on your card mean?
16/05/2023
Have you ever wondered what the numbers on your bank card mean? Although they can vary between 10 and 19 digits, most cards have 16, if issued in Spain.
ABBB BBCC CCCC CCCD
A Issuing company identifier
BBBBB Issuing institution or bank
CCCCCCCCCCC Individual account
D Verification Digit
A lot of information, isn't it? Let's look a bit closer. The first six to eight digits are known as a BIN or Bank Identification Number. The first one corresponds to the identifier of the company that issues the card. The following positions in this first block tell you which bank or financial institution has provided the card. The subsequent group indicates the individual account number and the last one is the verification digit. This digit is calculated with a formula called Luhn's algorithm, which uses the checksum method.
The first number on the card can give us some clues as to who the issuer is:
1 Airline
2 Aviation company
3 American Express or Diners Club
4 Visa
5 MasterCard
6 Discover
7 Oil company
8 Telecommunications or health
9 Government
Have you ever wondered why sometimes the numbers on your card appear in relief and sometimes they don't? There's a reason for the relief: it made it possible to mark the digits on the tracing paper with the imprinter, popularly known as the “click-clack machine”. They tend to be printed on debit cards. Some of them are even unnumbered.
As you know, your card has other important numbers such as the expiry date and the CVV or verification code, necessary for online purchases. Unlike what we told you regarding your current account number (IBAN), your card numbers, expiry date and CVV are sensitive information that you must protect and safeguard to avoid fraudulent use. Keep them safe!
