Although
biometric payment systems are still pretty rare -- good news for friends and relatives of folks who can't seem to stop buying those "As Seen on TV" items in the checkout aisle -- recent trials at stores like
Albertsons and
Cub Foods and even the
school lunch line would seem to indicate that
more pervasive rollouts are just around the corner. The latest -- and arguably biggest -- player to enter the biopayment game is none other than Citibank Singapore, which has been quietly distributing fingerprint readers to area businesses for the past month. Right now only Clear Platinum card holders have the option of going biometric, and since this group includes heavy representation from the tech-savvy 25 to 34-year-old demographic, it seems that Citibank is taking the right approach to ensure widespread adoption. For now it sounds like the systems are still few and far between -- with coffee houses and and a popular nightclub being the most visible participants -- but Citibank VP Anand Cavale predicts that deployment will quickly expand as more customers put their prints on file at local branches. Oh, and for those of you worried about finger-snatching becoming the hot 21st Century crime, you'll be pleased to learn that a seven-digit PIN is also necessary to complete transactions of this variety -- so even if someone saws off one of your digits to purchase a mocha latte, the time-consuming torture required to force that secret code out of you will probably prove to be too much of a hassle for today's mugger on-the-go.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Luigi @ Nov 22nd 2006 5:30PM
...Doesnt the whole 7 didget pin take away from the whole "convenience" thing?
Paul @ Nov 22nd 2006 5:33PM
Good, now instead of stolen credit cards we are going to have stolen fingers. Umm, thinking what is actually better to have?
Sean @ Nov 22nd 2006 5:37PM
"Although biometric payment systems are still pretty rare"
Not really.. they have this in a redneck gas station a block from my house.. and not in a large city
hugoliva @ Nov 22nd 2006 6:33PM
Howdy Neighbor!
Brandon West @ Nov 22nd 2006 6:08PM
@ Luigi - as a man who just left his wallet at work and will have to
drive through rush hour to retrieve, I could see how this would be
nice, 7-digit pin or not.
@ Paul - You may be able to take my credit
card without me noticing, but you're not going to get my finger
without a fight! Besides, what good is the finger if you don't have
the 7-digit pin? Also, I'd imagine you can't just whack someone's
finger off, waltz into a store, and put the finger on a scanner
without causing a bit of a scene.
@ Sean - I live in a fairly big city and I've never seen one of these. Don't confuse your own experiences with reality. I'd say that these things are indeed rare, if you consider the percentage of shops that take, say, MasterCard, and compare it with the number of shops that have biometric payment.
Philip @ Nov 22nd 2006 6:18PM
I just hope the thing reads better than the finger print scanners they use at Universal and Busch Gardens. Those things are horrible at reading finger prints. The guests either push too hard or too soft and it takes a few reads to get it right. Quite a few times the attendant actually man handles the person's finger to get it right. The attendants also have a small rag to wipe it clean from all the excess use.
nick @ Nov 22nd 2006 7:12PM
This isn't a rejoicing moment for impulse buyers, rather a sad moment. Soon your fingers will be maxed out..
But, this isn't really wow news.. biometrics is already here..
But, I have to agree with Brandon, I go shopping every weekend here in the Midwest(my girlfriend is a shop-a-holic); Haven't seen one yet..
Even Mastercard only has the speed tap style, where you just pass your card through a sensor.. (this is becoming more common) but using your fingers??
No.. this isn't common yet..
MauiDan @ Nov 22nd 2006 7:17PM
Does anyone find it ominous the phone number to call ends in 666?
Saif @ Nov 22nd 2006 7:17PM
Here in Chicago, the Jewel grocery stores (owned by Albertson's) have had these for quite a while now. However, I haven't registered to use it, nor have I seen anyone using them. I would register for it at the drop of a hat if I knew it was used in many places, but since it's just at Jewel, I keep forgetting. I sometimes forget to bring in a piece of mail or a canceled check or whatever they require for identification to register, but I always have my debit card (and 4-digit PIN) with me, so it's always easier to just put it off. Good idea, though -- it would be great to be able to walk into any Jewel in Chicago and purchase something, maybe even withdraw some cash from my checking account, without having to have anything with me.
alain @ Nov 22nd 2006 7:34PM
So really its like having a debit card in your finger. Basically the only convenience here is that you don't have to carry your debit card all the time, which isn't that useful since you'll probably still have to carry your wallet since it holds your drivers license and other stuff. So unless this really takes off and I can connect my prints with all the cards in my wallet(which would be really hard especially remembering all those pin #s). So really i think this product could be very useful with some ameliorations.
Murc @ Nov 22nd 2006 8:18PM
to many damn numbers in the world to remember...phone numbers, pin numbers, passwords, etc....
fingerprint scanners are garbage, mythbusters has a show it which all they had to do to "crack" it, was have a culprit grab a cd...which left his fingerprints on it, then they used a pc scanner, and then printed it out, and the fingerprint scanner accepted it.
They should be doing more with eye scanners.
Gadget Extremist @ Nov 25th 2006 5:54AM
Mythbusters defeated one of the "Toughest Fingerprint Scanners in the Buisnees" and all they used was some spit and ballistics gel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZncdgwjQxm0
Gmo @ Nov 22nd 2006 11:42PM
they are using the wrong finger
Kim @ Nov 25th 2006 12:46AM
I wonder if the average user in the US will accept a 7-digit pin code. Looking at my highly educated colleagues in the IT industry, many seems to be struggling with managing 4-digit pin codes...