What is a Bank Identification Number (BIN)?
If you accept online payments, then you probably know how important it is to protect the data of bank cardholders. However, many are interested in what the numbers on bank cards mean and what a BIN number is.
The BIN abbreviation stands for a bank identification number. These are the first 4-6 digits on the card that identify the card issuer – that is, the financial institution that issued the card. The first digit is the major industry identifier. The remaining numbers store information about the bank that issued the card. The bank BIN is designed to track cards and transactions on them to their issuer. Identification numbers can be seen on any payment cards ( both debit and credit) and gift cards. Such credit card bank identification allows you to detect fraud such as personal data theft or card theft. Also, using BIN, you can determine the type of the card, the bank's name that issued the card, and its location. This information can be compared with cardholder data to identify fraud.
Sometimes BINs are also called INNs (Issuer Identification Numbers) since nowadays, cards are issued not only by traditional banks but also by other financial institutions.
