Super-secure 'Hidden' credit card misses the point entirely

Forever worried about evildoers stealing your credit card? A new kind of card that hides your account info unless you punch in a code is designed to put those fears to rest.

From a technological perspective, Dynamics' Hidden card sounds like a decent idea. Designed to be totally compatible with existing electronic readers, the card keeps six digits of your account number obscured by replacing them with a paper-thin display. Use the five buttons on the card face to input a security code and the correct numbers instantly appear, simultaneously populating the magnetic stripe in back with the correct data. Wait a few minutes and the display shuts off and the stripe is wiped clean. That way, if anyone ever steals your card, it's useless to them.

That's all well and good, but the high-tech card does nothing to protect against more severe threats: sketchy websites and phishing scams that collect the account info of unsuspecting consumers online. That's a much bigger problem than pickpockets looking to score a few bucks. The Hidden card might be appropriate for some situations, but for most it'll be a placebo that doesn't treat the real problem.

That's where consumer brains and internet awareness comes in.