I've been using Stripe Snoop to read a variety of cards and most use a standard format. However, my student ID card is not in a standard format. It has a magnetic stripe that is 2 tracks wide, but only Track 2 has anything encoded on it (that I can tell). The information on Track 2 is not encoded in a standard format (no start/end sentinels and doesn't use standard encoding sets). I wrote a small program to try and finding matchings in the 4-bit, 6-bit, and ASCII character sets given the bitstream from the card, but there is nothing meaningful encoded on the card in any of those sets.
The card is a University One Card. The web site for this card is http://www.1card.com/. I've also heard that http://www.blackboard.com/ is somehow involved in making these cards, but I think the first site is more accurate. I've heard that the card uses proprietary magstripe technology, particularly high coercivity (more tightly packed 1's and 0's if I understand correctly); see http://www.allcampuscard.com/cch80.htm for details. This would explain why the company says the card can hold 4 19-digit numbers while Track 2 generally doesn't hold that much information. If that is the case, my magstripe reader might not be reading everything.
Please let me know if you have any information on this card, particularly whether it is high coercivity and whether you know which character set it uses or what encryption algorithm it uses.
Thanks for your help.
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Here's another site that is likely related to the student ID card I have: http://www.1cardaccess.com/. It's fairly closely related to http://www.1card.com/, but I think it's a bit older and more accurately represents what my student card might be. Please let me know if you have any information on how these cards are encoded. They don't appear to use the ANSI/ISO standards for encoding (at least mine doesn't).
I'm curious as to what sort of information people have gleaned from the magstripes on their student cards. Do most student cards tend to use the ANSI/ISO standards for encoding information? What sort of information is stored on the student cards?
You know its interesting that you mention Blackboard. I have had a few dealings (http://www.yak.net/mirrors/bb-faq.html http://www.yak.net/re-virgil.html\) with them in the past.
For the cards, I can tell you that they use ISO standards. The Georgia Tech Buzzcard in most of the early SS screenshots is a card. In fact there are little jabs and allusions to Blackboard in SS literature, photos (especially in the upcoming Make magazine) and source code comments.
This information is readily available. If you read the technical specifications of BB equipment, it says it conforms to the Track 2 ABA standard.
Its possible you are using a different system. I should point that there is extensive documentation of BB products, specs and well as previous manufactures of the systems such as Harco and AT&T on the Internet. Just og looking. I'd be interested in more formats of any type to add to the SS database
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From reading those pages on Blackboard, I think the college I go to (Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY) uses the Blackboard Transaction System for the ID cards. The card themselves from a company card IDenticard who follows ISO standards, and have the student ID number on track 2, but have the student name, ID number, and school email address on track 1.
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I've just started looking my school's card system. We use Blackboard here at RPI (Troy, NY as well). It does laundry, food service, and access control. The Blackboard laundry card reader is in a box in each laundry room with a lock. Got a small peek inside but scared, will try again some other day. Our cards I think are HID Duoprox cards (mag strip and RFID).
I'm also looking at the Intercard copier cards. I'm not sure if they use 4th track or some sort of non standard format. My reader, a USB 3 track, can read it and don't know if there's a way to get unformatted data from the reader. Should've gone Omron.
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I have one of those copy card as well. HVCC uses "MDS Single" magcards which look like they are only a single track. I read something off of there, but its like only 10 1's and 0's.
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I've been using Stripe Snoop to read a variety of cards and most use a standard format. However, my student ID card is not in a standard format. It has a magnetic stripe that is 2 tracks wide, but only Track 2 has anything encoded on it (that I can tell). The information on Track 2 is not encoded in a standard format (no start/end sentinels and doesn't use standard encoding sets). I wrote a small program to try and finding matchings in the 4-bit, 6-bit, and ASCII character sets given the bitstream from the card, but there is nothing meaningful encoded on the card in any of those sets.
The card is a University One Card. The web site for this card is http://www.1card.com/. I've also heard that http://www.blackboard.com/ is somehow involved in making these cards, but I think the first site is more accurate. I've heard that the card uses proprietary magstripe technology, particularly high coercivity (more tightly packed 1's and 0's if I understand correctly); see http://www.allcampuscard.com/cch80.htm for details. This would explain why the company says the card can hold 4 19-digit numbers while Track 2 generally doesn't hold that much information. If that is the case, my magstripe reader might not be reading everything.
I've also heard that the card uses some sort of encryption (see http://www.lmu.edu/pages/9933.asp\).
Please let me know if you have any information on this card, particularly whether it is high coercivity and whether you know which character set it uses or what encryption algorithm it uses.
Thanks for your help.
Here's another site that is likely related to the student ID card I have: http://www.1cardaccess.com/. It's fairly closely related to http://www.1card.com/, but I think it's a bit older and more accurately represents what my student card might be. Please let me know if you have any information on how these cards are encoded. They don't appear to use the ANSI/ISO standards for encoding (at least mine doesn't).
I'm curious as to what sort of information people have gleaned from the magstripes on their student cards. Do most student cards tend to use the ANSI/ISO standards for encoding information? What sort of information is stored on the student cards?
If anyone is interested, here's some info on the MIT card: http://www.ai.mit.edu/people/andre/mit_card/mit_card/mit_card.html.
You know its interesting that you mention Blackboard. I have had a few dealings (http://www.yak.net/mirrors/bb-faq.html http://www.yak.net/re-virgil.html\) with them in the past.
For the cards, I can tell you that they use ISO standards. The Georgia Tech Buzzcard in most of the early SS screenshots is a card. In fact there are little jabs and allusions to Blackboard in SS literature, photos (especially in the upcoming Make magazine) and source code comments.
This information is readily available. If you read the technical specifications of BB equipment, it says it conforms to the Track 2 ABA standard.
Its possible you are using a different system. I should point that there is extensive documentation of BB products, specs and well as previous manufactures of the systems such as Harco and AT&T on the Internet. Just og looking. I'd be interested in more formats of any type to add to the SS database
From reading those pages on Blackboard, I think the college I go to (Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY) uses the Blackboard Transaction System for the ID cards. The card themselves from a company card IDenticard who follows ISO standards, and have the student ID number on track 2, but have the student name, ID number, and school email address on track 1.
I've just started looking my school's card system. We use Blackboard here at RPI (Troy, NY as well). It does laundry, food service, and access control. The Blackboard laundry card reader is in a box in each laundry room with a lock. Got a small peek inside but scared, will try again some other day. Our cards I think are HID Duoprox cards (mag strip and RFID).
I'm also looking at the Intercard copier cards. I'm not sure if they use 4th track or some sort of non standard format. My reader, a USB 3 track, can read it and don't know if there's a way to get unformatted data from the reader. Should've gone Omron.
I have one of those copy card as well. HVCC uses "MDS Single" magcards which look like they are only a single track. I read something off of there, but its like only 10 1's and 0's.
I've been trying to dig anything on Intercard. Along with copier cards they also have arcade payment cards which use a center track.
The intercard copier card still has me stumped. Looks like a card with many tracks but I haven't gotten anything with my insert reader