Authorizing ATM/Debit Card Transactions

Authorization refers to providing approval to a withdrawal from an ATM. Most credit unions impose daily withdrawal limits as a security measure. Portico provides the authorization and processing of network ATM transactions with offline Fiserv Card Services Switch authorizations. ATM transactions are authorized based on the member's current account balance. Portico puts the ATM transaction through a series of authorization constraints. When all constraints are met, the transaction is authorized and the member's account is debited accordingly.

Partial Approvals

Portico supports partial approvals of debit card POS purchases. Cardholders can use partial approvals for a variety of POS transactions, including pre-authorizations and purchases with cash back. For instance, if a cardholder attempts to purchase an item, but he does not have enough funds in his account to authorize the full amount of the transaction, Portico can use partial approvals to approve a portion of the transaction, then allow the cardholder to pay the remaining amount of the transaction using some other means (cash, check, or another credit card). To use this feature, the merchant must support partial approvals. Partial approvals are not available for ATM transactions and reversals.

If the merchant supports partial approvals, Portico will attempt to authorize the full amount of the transaction using available funds, uncollected funds, overdraft protection, and courtesy pay. If the full amount of the transaction cannot be authorized, then Portico will authorize as much as it can based on the available balance (minus surcharges and fees) and reply to the merchant with the partial approval amount that is authorized. If the transaction is a pre-authorization, Portico will place a debit hold on the account for the partial approval amount. Instead of denying the transaction completely, Portico can use partial approvals to approve a portion of the transaction amount in case the cardholder has other means to pay the remaining amount of the transaction. If the cardholder does not have the means to pay for the remaining portion of the transaction, then the merchant can send a reversal for the partial amount that was approved.

POS Transactions - PIN-Based vs. Signature-Based Processing

The following conditions determine if the incoming POS transaction is considered PIN-Based:

Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and PIN Present Indicator is 1 – Signature Network with PIN or 4 – Debit Network with PIN.
Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and PIN Present Indicator is 0 – Undetermined or Blank – No Value, and Network ID is not equal to 644000 or 655000.
Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and PIN Present Indicator is not present in the message, and Network ID is not equal to 644000 or 655000.

The following conditions determine if the incoming POS transaction is considered Signature-Based:

Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and PIN Present Indicator is 2 – Signature Network without PIN or 3 – Debit Network without PIN.
Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and Network ID is equal to 644000 or 655000, and PIN Present Indicator is not present in the message.
Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and PIN Present Indicator is 0 – Undetermined or Blank – No Value, ad Network ID is equal to 644000 or 655000.
Transaction is a POS transaction, Pre-Authorization (Message type 1100), Settlement (Message Type 1220), or Authorization Request (Message Type 1200), and Network ID is equal to 772011 (Star NE COOP Network), and Originating Network ID is VC2.

Once the system determines whether the POS transaction is PIN-based or Signature-based, Portico will process the transaction based on the Signature Based POS field on the EFT Processing Rules - ATM/Debit Processing Rules tab:

Signature Based POS field	Activity	Counters updated in the Transaction Counters group box on the ATM/Debit Card Maintenance dialog box	Max Uses per Day and Daily Withdrawal Limit limits used to approve or deny transactions*	If applicable, fees assessed from the Point Of Sale Fees group box on the EFT Processing Rules - ATM/Debit Processing Rules tab
N	All transactions identified as POS, both Signature and PIN	Update the POS counters	Use limits in the POS Transactions group box	Assess the fee amount in the POS field
A	All signature-based POS transactions	Update the SIG counters	Use limits in the Signature POS group box	Assess the fee amount in the SIG field
A	All PIN-based POS transactions	Update the POS counters	Use limits in the POS Transactions group box	Assess the fee amount in the POS field
B	All signature-based POS transactions	Update the SIG counters	Use limits in the POS Transactions group box	Assess the fee amount in the SIG field
B	All PIN-based POS transactions	Update the POS counters	Use limits in the POS Transactions group box	Assess the fee amount in the POS field
C	All signature-based POS transactions	Update the POS counters	Use limits in the Signature POS group box	Assess the fee amount in the POS field
C	All PIN-based POS transactions	Update the POS counters	Use limits in the POS Transactions group box	Assess the fee amount in the POS field

*If temporary limits are in effect, the Temporary Withdrawal Limit field will be used instead of the Daily Withdrawal Limit field.

Offline Fiserv Card Services Switch Authorizations

Offline refers to the times the ATM switch is not communicating directly to Portico. Offline transactions do not access live files. The Fiserv Card Services Switch authorizes the network ATM transaction when Portico is offline using the following constraints supplied by your credit union.

PIN verification
Hot card
Daily usage limit
Daily withdrawal limit
Card authorization file (CAF)
Account exception file (AEF)

Hot card maintenance and offline network authorization will not affect member accounts immediately. Hot card maintenance at Fiserv Card Services is performed during the back-office cycle for only those customers who do not have a Fiserv Card Services administrative terminal. Maintenance information is obtained from the hot card file located on the member's ATM Card Maintenance dialog box. Customers can also call Fiserv Card Services if they want to hot card a member right away.

If a network has the ability to authorize transactions when they fail to receive a response from Fiserv Card Services, the authorization is based on constraints similar to those at Fiserv Card Services. Each credit union supplies those constraints to the network. Each credit union is responsible for maintaining the hot card file at the network.

Store and Forward Transactions

Store and forward transactions are ATM transactions stored on Portico or with Fiserv Card Services during extended service mode (ESM). When communication is reestablished, the transactions are forwarded in a file to be posted by Portico. Both Fiserv Card Services and Portico use store and forward processing to allow the member to access his account and withdraw money when the system or communication is down.

Member balances are available when Portico is in ESM; therefore, Portico can tell Fiserv Card Services to authorize a member's ATM transaction. All PIN verification is performed by Fiserv Card Services or the network ATM level.

Load Mode is the time the host is offline to reload all critical files pertaining to member and terminal activity after the back-office cycle. Fiserv Card Services authorizes ATM transactions during Load Mode, saving them to a store-and-forward file to be processed when Portico comes back online. If a store-and-forward transaction is not processed, Portico will queue it for later processing and skip to the next store-and-forward transaction.

Portico interleave mode allows real-time transactions to be processed at the same time as the store-and-forward file is being emptied.

Authorization Services

Porticooffers several authorization services: online, stand-in, and online with stand-in processing authorization. Credit unions can choose from these three different levels of authorization. Online and stand-in authorization are controlled within system and individual institution data files and include a variety of authorization types.

Stand-in Authorization - Portico performs stand-in transaction authorization based on authorization files maintained at Fiserv Card Services. Authorization files can be loaded from tape, or records may be added, deleted, or updated using cross-domain access with an Portico terminal. At the end of the business day, your credit union's transaction journal will be available for transmission to your host computer for posting transactions.
Online Authorization - With online authorization, Fiserv Card Services routes the transactions to Portico for authorization.
Online Authorization With Stand-in Processing - With online authorization with stand-in processing, Fiserv Card Services routes the transactions to Portico for authorization. If Portico is unavailable, Fiserv Card Services authorizes and stores the transactions.

Authorization Files

FiservEFT supports a combination of files referred to as the Institution Database. If you elect to have Portico provide transaction authorization support either as your primary authorization method or as a stand-in, the system will maintain the authorization files necessary for the support level you select. These files allow you to customize your card program to meet your credit union's unique marketing and strategic objectives. The following primary data files support the authorization process.

Debit Account File (DAF) - Each record in the DAF contains the account relationship, restrictions, daily withdrawal limits, pending holds and usage for cardholders on an individual basis.
Card Authorization File (CAF) - Each record in the CAF contains the account relationships, restrictions, daily withdrawal limits, and usage for cardholders on an individual basis. If you offer more than one checking or savings account for the same primary account number to be encoded on the card, you must use the CAF file.
Account Exception File (AEF) - This file contains card numbers that are prohibited, for example lost or stolen, and the action to be taken when one of these cards is used. Card numbers that require exceptional treatment, such as higher withdrawal limits, extra PIN tries, or special account access are also in this file.
Positive Balance File (PBF) - If stand-in authorization processing is selected, the PBF is an optional feature to the CAF. The PBF contains account balances for the cardholders in the CAF. When a transaction is performed, the system will check it against the cardholders account balance in the PBF and against the withdrawal limits in the CAF. Account balances are updated during the day as transactions occur; therefore, your cardholders can obtain balance inquiries while EDS is performing stand-in authorization processing. The PBF can be updated using magnetic tape or electronic transmission.
Usage Accumulation File (UAF) - When the AEF is used for authorization, a UAF entry is automatically created on a daily basis only if a cardholder performs a withdrawal or bad PIN attempt. The UAF is purged at the end of your business day. The UAF accumulates the cardholder withdrawals and bad PIN attempts and compares the information against the limits specified in the Card Definition File (CDF).

The authorization level you support determines whether you have access to one or more files. For example, if you select online with stand-in authorization and have selected the CAF, you may elect to use the PBF. If AEF is selected, the UAF is automatically built by the system.

Temporary Withdrawal Limits

If your credit union uses Portico's Temporary Withdrawal Limits, you can enter temporary withdrawal limits. If your credit union uses Integrated Desktop, the temporary withdrawal limits are transmitted to Fiserv Card Services immediately. If your credit union uses MVFE or RCM, the temporary withdrawal limits are transmitted to Fiserv Card Services in the end-of-day batch file, effective the following calendar day. When the temporary limit period is in effect, Fiserv Card Services and Portico will authorize withdrawal transactions using the temporary withdrawal limits. On the date in the Resume Permanent Limits field on the ATM/Debit Card Maintenance - Authorization tab, Fiserv Card Services and Portico will return to using the daily withdrawal limits to authorize withdrawal transactions. The temporary withdrawal limits fields will only appear if the Temporary Withdrawal Limits check box is selected on the Credit Union Profile - Self Service tab.

VISA Debit Account Verification

VISA’s account verification message is an important tool used by merchants prior to executing a purchase to validate that a cardholder account is open and valid. This message is used in many different merchant environments: it establishes a recurring or bill payment relationship, validates a card-not-present purchase prior to inventory fulfillment, or is used to validate phone orders prior to delivery of goods or services. The advantage of the account verification message over a normal authorization request is that it provides verification of the cardholder’s account without negatively impacting a cardholder’s funds availability. An account verification transaction is essentially a zero dollar authorization, and as such, the cardholder’s open-to-buy (OTB) is not impacted. The account verification message does not have a corresponding settlement transaction since the amount is $0.00.

To support the account verification message, Portico allows a pre-authorization request with a zero dollar amount. A pre-authorization request with a zero dollar amount will validate that the member has a valid debit ID, has access to the account type in the request (share, share draft, line of credit), and verify that the card is in good standing, is not expired, and the daily number of transactions has not been exceeded.

The account verification will be denied if any of the following is true:

Debit ID is invalid.
Debit ID status is any value other than: 0 – Inactive, 1 – Active, or 6 – Pre-Activated.
Debit ID has an expiration date less than the current system date.
Authorized access is not granted for the account type being requested.
Daily number of POS transaction uses has been exceeded.

For credit unions that use Portico’s debit holds option (Debit Hold check box is selected in the Network Options section on Credit Union Profile – Self Service tab), any pre-authorization request or pre-authorization advice received with a zero dollar amount will not add a debit hold record to the cardholder’s account.