Smart cards, also referred to as IC cards by ISO, are credit card size cards embedded with IC chips. These IC Chips help store information such as personal data and monetary values, with other capacities available to be added for high-end operations. Compared to magnet-strip cards, smart cards can store hundreds and thousands of times the information, and their reliability and security are advanced by the use of encryption and biometrics. The three most common card types found nowadays are the contact type, contact-less type and hybrid type. Different types are used depending on the industry. The popularity of smart cards are quickly spreading across the globe, paving ways toward new and better future for the financial, telecommunications, and various other industries.
SIM is short for Security Identification Module. SIM cards the size of small stamps with an embedded IC chip. They are most commonly found in mobile phones, and today, they are used in over 70% of the mobile phone market. SIM cards contain codes which help encrypt/decrypt phone signals. They store 16~64kb of memory, which translates to hundreds of phone numbers, addresses, and text messages.