Business Information System

Credit card machines are a form of information systems that are used by almost every kind of business. It seems as if debit and credit cards are replacing paper money. I myself have become accustom to using my credit card; never paying attention to the whole process that occurs right in front of my eyes. Customer’s information is inputted into this type of system by swiping the credit card. The credit card contains a magnetic strip with tiny magnets that that encode vital information about the credit card account. After this information is inputted, it then is processed. By processing the customers’ information, you (customer) give the merchant permission to deduct credit from your credit line; along with identifying the merchant. This data is then modulated into sound that transfers across the telephone network. It is then sent to a local credit card network node.

We can look at the output of this transaction being the confirmation of card approval. A receipt is a tangible form of output. It shows us our name/credit card information, where we bought our products and how much we spent. This is a very important system for all businesses. It allows customers to spend more money then they would actually hold (working out in the merchants favor). It also has made the consumers shopping process convenient. We have the ability to spend money we may or may not have without having to lug around cash.