US Tech giant Apple closed its Apple Pay service for Russia’s Mir card payment system. It is closing a loophole that still allows Russians to keep using their service, Russia’s largest lender and payment system said on Friday.
On March 1, Apple banned the usage of the Apple Pay service, which launched in Russia in 2016, following Russia's decision to release tens of thousands of soldiers into Ukraine on February 24, barring Russian Mastercard and Visa cards from accessing the service.
According to Russia's National Card Payment System, Russia's home-grown system, Mir, system was connected to the Apple Pay service until that access was withdrawn on Thursday (NSPK).
"Apple has told NSPK that it would no longer support Mir cards in its Apple Pay payment service. Users will be unable to add new Mir cards to the system after March 24. Over the next several days, Apple will suspend all activities on previously installed cards "NSPK announced this on Friday.
Sberbank, Russia's largest lender, said Apple had notified them of its plan to further limit access to its Apple Pay service. Apple did not reply to Reuter's inquiries for comment.
"There will be no further usage of Mir cards in Apple Pay," the bank warned.
Apple Pay service is an Apple Inc. mobile payment and digital wallet service that allows customers to create payments in person, in iOS applications, and on the web using Safari. It is compatible with the iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac. It is not available on any client device that is not manufactured and distributed by Apple (in particular, it cannot be used on any Android device, nor any browser running on Windows). It digitizes and can replace a contactless credit or debit card chip and PIN transaction at a point-of-sale terminal.
It does not necessitate the use of Apple Pay service-specific contactless terminals; it may be used with any retailer that accepts contactless payments. It includes two-factor authentication using Touch ID, Face ID, PIN, or passcode. Devices use near field communication (NFC) to wirelessly interface with point-of-sale systems, an integrated secure element (eSE) to safely store payment data and perform cryptographic operations, and Apple's Touch ID and Face ID for biometric security.
Mir is a Russian electronic fund transfer payment system created by the Central Bank of Russia under a law passed on May 1, 2017. The Russian National Card Payment System, a subsidiary company of the Central Bank of Russia, operates the system. Mir does not issue cards, grant credit, or establish rates and fees for consumers; rather, Mir distributes Mir-branded payment solutions to financial institutions, which they then use to issue a credit, debit, or other services to their clients. The advent of international sanctions on Russia in 2014 accelerated the development and deployment of Mir.
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