Pharos Online Payments
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Questions about security
- Is it safe to make payments over the internet?
- How secure are the University's Online Payments Facilities?
- Is my computer (PC) sufficiently secure to make payments online?
- How will I be able to tell that I have entered a secure site?
- Can I get independent advice about the security of making payments online?
Questions about online payments using credit or debit cards
- Who can make payments online and what can they pay?
- What cards are accepted?
- I have attempted to pay online but have received the message 'Authorisation has failed'. Why is this?
- How will I know that my payment has been successfully processed?
- My internet connection was broken while I was attempting to pay online. What do I do?
- When is the system available?
- Why do I have to enter the address to which my credit card statements are sent?
Questions about print credit refunds
Printing with Pharos
Problems
- What should I do when the system states the process was incomplete but the payment was successful?
- What should I do when I have made a payment but my print credit account has not been updated?
Is it safe to make payments over the internet?
Almost all authorities consider paying using a credit/debit card over the internet to be safer than making such payments over the telephone, by post or by fax.
How secure are the University's Online Payments Facilities?
All data is transmitted using 128 bit encryption and secure socket layers.- the current industry standard. After entering the secure site, but before you are asked to enter any information, you will have the opportunity to examine the secure site certificate. On the secure site certificate, there is a link that gives full technical details of security provided.
Is my computer (PC) sufficiently secure to make payments online?
Regardless of whether or not you use your computer (PC) for online payments, you should take the steps below to ensure its security. These measures are especially important if you use it for making payments online or if have have confidential information stored on it.
- Keep your software up to date. Occasionally publishers discovers
vulnerabilities in their products and issue 'patches' to protect against any
security threats. It is important that you keep your operating system (eg
Windows XP) and browser (eg Internet Explorer) up to date. Some
operating systems (eg Windows XP) can be configured to allow automatic
updates.
- Use anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date.
- Use up-to-date anti-spyware software to protect against programmes that
fraudsters can use to collect information from your computer. Some (but
not all) anti-virus programmes have anti-spyware incorporated in them.
- Use a firewall to get protection from unauthorised access to your computer when you are connected to the internet.
How will I be able to tell that I have entered a secure site?
You will notice that the address (URL) shown in the address bar starts 'https://' rather than 'http://'. You should also see an image of a padlock on your screen.
Can I get independent advice about the security of making payments online?
You can visit the Get Safe Online website which is sponsored by the government and many of the country's leading banks and financial institutions.
Who can make payments online and what can they pay?
You will need to be student at UWE and know your UWE Student ID and Password (the one used for MyUWE and Blackboard).
What cards are accepted?
Payment can be made be made by credit or debit card issued by Visa, Mastercard, Visa Delta, Maestro (if issued in the UK), Solo, Visa Electron and JCB.
We are unable to accept Amex or GE Capital for online payments.
I have attempted to pay online but have received the message 'Authorisation has failed'. Why is this?
There are several reasons why this may have happened.
- You may have made a mistake entering the card number.
- Your credit limit may have been exceeded. In addition to an overall credit limit, some card issuers may impose daily limits and limits on the size of individual transactions.
- The post code you entered is different from the post code held by the card issuing company.
- Not all cards are eligible for online payments - please refer to the previous question.
- The server used by the University's Payment Service Provider is offline. This is unlikely as the service is available 24 hours per day 365 days per year but there are occasional 'outages' for maintenance which usually last no more than 30 seconds.
If your card has been declined you may try again but, please, be aware that most card issuers allow only three consecutive attempts before the card is blocked for the rest of the day. In order to protect your confidentiality, the card issuing company will not tell the University why the transaction has been declined and you will need to contact them directly to ascertain the reason.
How will I know that my payment has been successfully processed?
At the end of the process you will see a screen entitled 'Payment Details Confirmation' that includes all relevant data, including a unique payment ID. In the unlikely event of any problem occurring the Cash Office will be able to ascertain the history of the transaction from this number.
Within a very short time, you will also receive an email confirming your transaction and quoting the unique reference number.
Your Pharos account should also be credited with the payment made. At the end of the payment process you will be able to return to the print credits system and view your account.
My internet connection was broken while I was attempting to pay online. What do I do?
If the connection was broken broken at any point before you clicked the 'Make Payment' button you can start the process again once the connection is re-established. If you have clicked the 'Make Payment' button you should contact the Cash Office to enquire whether the payment was made before the connection was lost.
Your are advised only to use a computer (PC) that has a reliable internet connection when making payments online or when visiting secure sites.
When is the system available?
The system is available 24 hours per day, 365 days of the year.
Why do I have to enter the address to which my credit card statements are sent?
This is a requirement of the banks operating the online payment system and is done to reduce the possibility of a stolen card being used to make payment.
Can I get a refund of unused print credits?
Refunds will be given on request to students once they have completed their studies or have withdrawn from UWE. Students must make a refund request within 6 months following the end of their studies or withdrawal from UWE. See terms and conditions for further details of how to make a request.
How will my refund be processed?
Refunds must be requested at the University's Cash Office, Frenchay Campus and proof of course completion/withdraw and userid (studentid card) must be provided. A Pharos print account disable authorisation form must also be completed before the refund is made.
How do I open my Pharos account and use UWE printers?
Please refer to the Pharos knowledge base.
What should I do when the system states the process was incomplete but the payment was successful?
This problem occurs when Pharos print credits has lost its connection to the payment system. The payment has been successfully taken but you print credit account will not have been credited. Please contact the IT Support Centre if you have this problem.
What should I do when I have made a payment but my print credit account has not been updated?
Please contact the IT Support Centre quoting your unique payment reference. They will review your payment and update your Pharos account accordingly.
