Card Tokenization
The API endpoints collected in this section are for version v1 of the Card Tokenization API.
Card Tokenization Overview
High-Level Description
Card Tokenization APIs are used to exchange a Primary Account Number (PAN) for a Card Token, and vice versa. There are two endpoints, one for each direction of the exchange. A Card Token is a PCI-compliant identifier that can be used in place of a PAN in some APIs.
Use
Card Tokenization APIs are primarily useful to consumers who need to deal with card numbers but wish to remain abstracted from the regulatory burden of PCI compliance. A Card Token can be used as the unique representation of a PAN and can be transmitted and stored without further encryption.
Exchange Card Token for PAN
When the API receives a Card Token, it can be submitted along with a public key to receive an encrypted PAN. This API method will only succeed if the Card Token is already associated with a PAN. The flow for how this encryption functions can be seen in the reference for Encryption Utilities API.
Exchange PAN for Card Token
When the API receives an encrypted PAN, it will either find an existing Card Token or generate a new one. The consumer will then receive this Card Token to use in all future requests. The flow and references for encryption can be found in Encryption Utilities API.