Address Verification (AVS) and Card Verification checks (CV2)

Dave Carr
Dave Carr
  • Updated

This article is about Address Verification Service (AVS) and Card Verification checks (CV2). You’ll also find information on declined payments and how to change your AVS and CV2 rules.

 

What is the Address Verification Service?

Address Verification (AVS) is a service provided by Payment Service Providers and Issuing Banks. AVS is designed to help prevent fraud and chargebacks by authenticating customers and detecting suspicious transactions during a transaction.

An AVS check is performed when an organisation submits a card authorisation request to the Issuing Bank. The Issuing Bank provides the results of the check and lets the organisation know whether the address matches either fully or partially, or not at all. The transaction is then authorised or declined, depending on your rules.

AVS is a useful tool to prevent fraud and should be used in conjunction with other tools such as CV2 checks and 3D Secure.

TIP: AVS only verifies the numeric part of the address and Postcode/Zip code/Postal Code.

 

What is CV2 checking?

Card Verification (CV2), also known as CVV, is a three or four digit security code printed on the customer’s credit or debit card. During a transaction, the customer is prompted to enter the CV2 code. The CV2 is then checked and verified that the code entered is the correct one for the card used.

The transaction will be authorised or declined, depending on your rules.

 

AVS/CV2 and declined payments

AVS and CV2 checks are designed to help reduce fraud by detecting suspicious activity. However, some genuine transactions may be declined for the following reasons:

  • The customer’s issuing bank has reported to the Payment Service Provider a mismatch between the address provided during the sale and the address registered with the Customer’s Issuing bank.
  • The address checking rules set up with your Payment Service Provider have caused the transaction to be rejected. For example, you might have a rule that rejects transactions where there isn’t a matching postcode.

 

Changing AVS and CV2 rules

You can change the rules for authorising and rejecting payments with your Payment Service Provider. This is a decision that must be made within your organisation. Our Support Team cannot advise on what rules to set.

There are different rules you can set for Address Verification (AVS) and CV2 depending on your Payment Service Provider.

 

Opayo

If your Payment Service Provider is Opayo, you can set rules which apply to transactions within a certain range.

For example, you may want to have stricter checks for higher value transactions and accept partial matches for lower value transactions.

To change AVS and CV2 rules in MyOpayo, follow these steps:

  1. Log into MyOpayo
  2. Click Settings from the top menu:

     

  3. Click AVS/CV2 from the left menu:

     

  4. Click Add rule:

     

You’ll see a Add new AVS/CV2 rule screen:

You can set the following rules:

  • Accept DATA NOT CHECKED (bank or card scheme don’t check values): Transactions will be approved even if no checks have been made on CV2, address and postcodes.

     

  • Accept ADDRESS MATCH ONLY (CV2 check fails, Address check succeeds: Transactions will be approved if address and postcode checks have passed, but the CV2 check has failed.

     

  • Accept SECURITY CODE MATCH ONLY (Address fails, CV2 check succeeds: Transactions will be approved as long as the CV2 check succeeds, even if the address and postcode checks have failed.

     

  • Accept NO DATA MATCHES (both CV2 and AVS checks fail): Transactions will be approved even if none of the address, postcode or CV2 checks succeed. We do not recommend you use this option. This could lead to an increase in fraudulent transactions and chargebacks.

Once you've set your rules, click Add Rule.

You can find more information on the Elevon website: Activating & adding AVS/CV2 rules.

 

Worldpay, Authorize.Net and Moneris

If your Payment Provider is Worldpay, Authorize.Net or Moneris, you can log into your online account and change the rules for rejecting payments.

Alternatively, you can make a request by getting in touch with your Payment Service Provider. The name of the rules and their description may differ depending on which Payment Service Provider you use.

This article should give you an understanding of Address Verification and Card Verification. To learn more about payments, visit the Manage Payments section of the Support Centre.