| 摘要 |
<p>The present invention comprises a method of activating a prepaid account using an existing electronic funds transfer network which includes a point-of-sale (POS) terminal (12), debit/credit card processing infrastructure (30) and an account insurer authorization center (40). The method comprises the steps of: obtaining identification data concerning the account to be activated at the POS terminal (202); sending an activation request message including, the obtained data, from the POS terminal through the card processing infrastructure to the account issuer authorization processing center (206); receiving the activation request message at the account insurer authorization processing center (210), deciding whether or not to activate the account and generating a denial/response code based upon the activation decision, the denial/response code not resulting in the transfer of any funds (212); sending the denial/response code from the account insurer authorization processing center, through the card processing infrastructure to the POS terminal (214); and receiving the denial/response code at the POS terminal, decoding the denial/response code and confirming at the POS terminal, the activation status of the account (218). In a preferred embodiment, the account being activated is a card, such as a prepaid card.</p> |
