Why Do ATM Pins Have 4 Digits? Know Interesting Facts About ATM’s

Much as an asset the ATMs have revolutionized the banking industry and the way people carry out their banking transaction. The very first Automatic Teller Machine went public in 1969 with due pioneered efforts from John Adrian Shepherd Barron, who was a Scottish-born in Shillong.

ATM at today’s day and age are the most can’t-do-without machine changing lives by allowing people to have cash handy in just a swipe and all that with a help from the ATM pin. An ATM pin authenticates a user to access his/her bank account on an ATM to avail the underlined facilities.

■ Usually any PIN or Personal Identification Number can vary in length from 4 to 12, according to the ISO standard, although our present practices include a 4 digit pin more often.

■  A four digit pin can vary from 0000 -9999 allowing 10,000 possible combinations making them more vulnerable to crack and if we go by the books then 20% of the pins are vulnerable to hacking.

■  Another fact untold, the most common ATM pin have 1234 and 1111 topping the list. There are still many banks in various countries which go with the length six.

■  There is something else very interesting about ATM pins, each ATM has a reverse pin detection technology called ATMSafetyPin installed patented by IIlinois lawyer Joseph Zingher where if the user enters a their personal identification number (PIN) in reverse, it automatically calls the police immediately, although user gets the money. Presently, this software isn’t in use, though.

■  Switzerland and some other countries follow only six digit ATM pin.

Ever did the thought as to why an ATM pin is of length four, stuck your cerebrum? If yes, then you are quite alert and for the otherwise responses there is a quite uncomplicated answer to that. John Adrian Shepherd Barron himself preferred six digits for an ATM pin because he could easily remember his six figure army number but it all boiled down to the fact that oddly enough when he tried to experiment this on his wife Caroline, the longest she could remember were four digits. That is when he decided to stick with 4 digit pin code.

Though, a 4 digit pin not always puts one at risk as for anyone else to access it, it’s inevitable for them to be in possession of the card at the first place.
Digits more than 4 were a task bit difficult for Caroline to recall and yes she made us all lucky making us remember only 4 digits. Thanks, to the lady by all means.