| Term |
Description
|
| ACD |
Automatic
Call Distribution |
| AEIR |
Administrative
Equipment Identity Register |
| A-KEY |
Authorization
KEY |
| AKU |
Asymmetric
key unit |
| AMPS |
Advanced
Mobile Phone Service/System |
| ANSI |
American
National Standards Institute |
| API |
Application
Programme Interface |
| APLMN |
Associated
PLMN |
| ARPU |
Average
Revenue per User, the key measure of network operators’
financial performance |
| ASCII |
American
Standard Code for Information Interchange |
| ATM |
Asynchronous
Transfer Mode - protocol for data transfer across networks
(also indicates Automatic Teller Machine, or ‘hole
in the wall’) |
| ATDM |
Asynchronous
Time Division Multiplexing |
| AVL |
Automatic
Vehicle Location |
| B2B
|
Business
to business |
| B2C |
Business
to consumer |
| BIN |
Card
issuer identification number |
| BSI |
British
Standards Institute |
| CA |
Certification
Authority: a body able to certify the identity of one
or more parties to an exchange or transaction |
| CAI |
Common
Air Interface |
| CAM |
Card
Authentication Method |
| CAMEL |
Customized
Application of Mobile Enhanced Logic |
| CDMA |
Code
Division Multiple Access Allows reuse of scarce radio
resource in adjacent areas |
| CDR |
Call
Detail Records |
| CEN |
Centre
Européan pour la Normalisation (European Standards
Association) |
| cHTML |
Compact
HTML |
| CI |
Cell
Identity |
| CLI |
Call
Line Identity/Identification |
| Contact
Card |
Smart
card with a visible gold contact |
| Contactless
card |
Smart
card which uses radio to transfer data |
| CRM |
Customer
relationship management |
| CTI |
Computer
Telephony Integration |
| CVC |
Cardholder
Verification Code - encrypted data on a Visa card’s
magnetic stripe |
| CVM
|
Cardholder
Verification Method |
| CVV |
Cardholder Verification Value - encrypted data on a MasterCard
card’s magnetic stripe |
| DDI |
Direct
Dialling In |
| DES |
Data
Encryption Standard (or Data Encryption Algorithm): the
most widely used method for symmetric encryption, which
uses the same key for encryption and decryption; an enhanced
version is Triple-DES |
| Digital
Signature |
An
encrypted field, normally encrypted using the sender’s
private key, which is attached to a message to prove its
source and integrity |
| DSL
|
Digital
Subscriber Line |
| DTMF |
Dual
Tone Multifrequency |
| EA |
Evaluation
Authority |
| E-cash |
Electronic
money, often held on a smart card |
| ECC |
Elliptic
Curve Cryptography (also indicates Error Correcting Code) |
| EDGE |
Evolved
Data for GSM Evolution - allows networks to meet the requirements
for UMTS (see below) |
| EDI |
Electronic
Data Exchange |
| EDIFACT |
Electronic
Data Interchange for Commerce & Trade |
| EEPROM |
Electrically
Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory - key indicator
of the memory size of a smart card |
| EFTPOS |
Electronic
Funds Transfer at the Point of Sale |
| EIR |
Equipment
Identity Register |
| EIRP |
Equipment
Identity Register Procedure |
| EN |
Euronorm
or European Standard Important ENs for smart cards include
EN 726 (a multi-function phone card) and EN 1546 (Inter-sector
Electronic Purse) |
| EMV |
Europay/Mastercard/Visa - the global payment industry
specifications for chip-based payment cards. EMV part
1 corresponds with (and generally conforms with) ISO 7816
parts 1-5. The other parts of this specification cover
the details of a standard credit/debit application and
the requirements for terminals |
| EPROM |
Electronically
Programmable Record-Only Memory - used on disposable ‘smart’
cards like telephone cards |
| ETACS |
Extended
Total Access Communications System |
| ETSI |
European
Telecommunications Standards Institute |
| FRADs |
Frame
Relay Access Devices |
| GMCF |
Global
Mobile Commerce Forum |
| GPRS |
General
Packet Radio Services |
| GPS |
Global
Positioning System |
| GSM |
Général
Systeme Mobile, or Global System for Mobile communications
-worldwide standard for mobile phone usage |
| GSM1800 |
GSM
operating at 18 GHz |
| GSM1900 |
GSM
operating at 19 GHz |
| GUI |
Graphical
User Interface |
| HDML |
Handheld
Device Markup Language |
| HLR |
Home
Location Register |
| HPLMN |
Home
Public Land Mobile Network |
| HSCSD |
High
Speed Circuit Switched Data Often proposed as a suitable
way to broadcast video over mobile systems |
| HSM |
Host
Security Module (or Hardware Security Module) - a hardware
device used for storing keys and performing cryptographic
functions under control of a host computer |
| Html |
hypertext
markup language |
| http
|
hypertext
transfer protocol |
| IC
Card |
Integrated
Circuit Card, or ‘smart’ card. Applies to memory
cards like stored value or application cards like Javacard)
|
| IDA |
Infrared Data Association |
| IMEI |
International
Mobile Equipment Identity. Unique identifier for digital
handsets, given at Type Approval |
| IMSI |
International
Mobile Subscriber Identity. Unique identifier for SIM
|
| IP |
Intellectual
Property |
| IrFM |
Infrared
Financial Messaging, the global interoperable standard
for infrared transmission. |
| ISDN |
Integrated
Services Digital Network |
| ISO |
International
Standards Organization. The main ISO standard relating
to smart cards is ISO 7816: "Identification cards: integrated
circuit cards with contacts" The draft standard 14443
coverscontactless cards |
| ISP |
Internet
Service Provider |
| ITSEC |
Information
Technology Security Evaluation Criteria: European standard
for evaluating the security of commercial computer products
|
| ITU |
International
Telecommunications Union: the international body responsible
for telecommunications co-ordination, the successor body
to CCITT |
| IVR |
Interactive
Voice Response System |
| Java |
Object-oriented
language, theoretically allowing applications to be written
once, run anywhere regardless of the platform |
| Javacard |
The
JavaCard Forum has developed specifications for running
a subset of the Java language on a smart card. Javacard
is now the de facto operating system globally for SIM
cards and other multi-application smart cards |
| Key
Escrow |
Method
proposed by governments to control the use of strong encyption.
Users lodge a copy of their private keys with an accredited
body, which agrees to surrender the keys to government
agencies on production of a court order |
| Keys |
In
a modern encryption system, the algorithm is generally
assumed to be known, and the key is secret. A key is a
string of meaningless bits until it is used to encode
or decode a message |
| LAN |
Local
Area Network - distributed data processing network which
serves a single site or group of users without accessing
public networks |
| MO |
Mobile
Originated |
| MSC |
Mobile
Services Switching Centre |
| MSIN |
Mobile
Station Identification Number |
| MT |
Mobile
Termination |
| MULTOS |
Multi-application
smart card operating system |
| NTS |
Number
Translation Service |
| OCR |
Optical
Character Recognition |
| OMR |
Optical
Memory Reader |
| OTA |
Over-The-Air
The method used to remotely manage applications on a subscriber
handset |
| PAN |
Primary
Account Number - identification number on a payment card
|
| PCM |
Pulse
Code Modulation |
| PCMIA |
Personal
Computer Memory Card International Association - develops
standards for PC memory cards |
| PCN |
Personal
Communication Network - GSM with 1800Mhz frequency |
| PCS |
GSM
with 1900Mhz frequency |
| PDA |
Personal
Digital Assistant |
| PDC |
Personal
Digital Communications system for mobile networks used
in Japan |
| PGP |
Pretty
Good Privacy - popular public key algorithm |
| PIM |
Personal
Information Management |
| PIN |
Personal
Identification Number |
| PKI |
Public
Key Infrastructure |
| PLMN |
Public
Land Mobile Network |
| PSTN |
Public
Service Telephone Network |
| PTT |
Post,
Telegraph and Telecommunications - old acronym for state-owned
monopolies, typically in Europe |
| Public
key |
A
public key encryption algorithm where one key is published
and the other kept secret |
| PVC |
Permanent
Virtual Circuit |
| RAM |
Rand
Access Memory - memory element in smart cards which requires
power to maintain data |
| RFID |
Radio
Frequency Identification |
| RSA |
Rivest-Shamir-Adleman,
the algorithm which is the most widely used form of public-key
encryption, particularly for digital signatures and key
exchange |
| SAM |
Secure
Access Module |
| SDN |
Synchronous
Data Network |
| SET |
Secure
Electronic Transactions: standard developed by MasterCard
and Visa for credit card payment across networks. Never
widely adopted and now effectively defunct |
| SIM |
Subscriber
Identity Module Smart ‘card’ inside a mobile
handset which contains the user’s identity, telephone
directory and SMSs Applications may reside on the SIM
|
| SIM
Toolkit |
GSM
standard which provides mechanisms, or tools, which mobile
network operators can use to produce SIM controlled features/applications
and services |
| Smart
card |
Plastic
card with embedded microchip (integrated circuit) which
allows storage and processing of information |
| SMS |
Short
Message Service. Facility for sending text messages on
certain handsets |
| SNA |
System
Network Architecture |
| SS7 |
Signalling
System No 7 |
| SSL |
Secure
Socket Layer Form of data encryption used in computer-based
transactions |
| STK |
See
SIM Toolkit |
| TACS |
Total
Access Communications System |
| TCP/IP |
Transmission
Control Protocol/Internet Protocol |
| TDMA |
Time
Division Multiple Access (see also CDMA) |
| TTP |
Trusted
Third Party - government appointed or registered body
which holds keys used for authentication purposes |
| UMTS |
Universal
Mobile Telecommunications System - the third generation
mobile standard |
| USSD |
Unstructured
Supplementary Service Data |
| VAS |
Value
Added Services. Typically information or entertainment
services delivered by an operator using voice or SMS |
| VLR |
Visitor
Location Register |
| VMS |
Voice
Messaging/Mail System |
| WAP |
Wireless
Application Protocol |
| W-CDMA |
Wideband
CDMA |
| WIM |
Wireless
Identity Module |
| WML |
Wireless
Markup Language |
| WTLS |
Wireless Transport Layer Security - wireless equivalent
of SSL |