The state of EMV card penetration — and awareness — remains low, despite reams has been elusive, despite increasing media reporting (and occasional misreporting) about the new "fraud proof" credit cards.

This is according to a newly released report by research consultancy Javelin, "State of EMV Cardholders: Opportunities to Capitalize on the Halo Effect." Based on a November 2014 study of more than 8,500 U.S. retail bank customers, the report assesses EMV card penetration among major FIs, cardholder awareness and education, and methods of education about EMV.

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The report offers a snapshot of the state of cardholder awareness of EMV, and a look at the differences (and similarities) between consumers with and without EMV cards in their wallet.

Overwhelmingly, Javelin found, printed material sent with the new card was both the most common and the least effective form of customer education about EMV.

Nearly half (47 percent) of EMV cardholders said this is how their primary bank informed them about the chip and its purpose.  Other educational channels included online banking, text messaging, mobile banking app, and call center.

FIs that do not actively work to inform their smart card holders about EMV could be missing out on a valuable image- and relationship-building opportunity, too, Javelin said. The study indicted that consumers who hold EMV cards (and, presumably, are aware of this fact) have a far better perception of their primary FI than non-EMV cardholders.

"Neglecting cardholder education on EMV is a squandered opportunity for banks to shine. The halo effect from EMV will not last long — only a few short years — because of the normalization process of EMV in the public domain," Javelin Head of Payments Nick Holland said in a press release. "For FIs to capture consumer attention, they need to proactively educate across a variety of media."