A smart card is also known as a chip card. What does the chip contain?

• A. Only plaintext cardholder data
• B. Integrated circuits embedded within; data including data equivalent to magnetic-stripe data
• C. Only a PIN
• D. No card data; just cryptographic keys

Answer: (B)

A smart card contains an embedded integrated circuit that provides processing and storage for the card’s data and cryptographic keys, and it can emulate magnetic-stripe data to remain compatible with systems that expect track data. This means the chip isn’t limited to plain cardholder data or a single PIN; it holds application data, keys, and data that may resemble magnetic-stripe data so older readers can still work. The other descriptions miss the hardware aspect or the range of data stored on the chip: it’s not just plaintext data, not only a PIN, and not devoid of data beyond keys.