AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile team up to transform your smartphone into a credit card
By Vlad Savov 
posted August 2nd 2010 3:41AM
posted August 2nd 2010 3:41AM
posted August 2nd 2010 3:41AM
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Cool
COOL BEANS!
@Coke Lmfao Johnny bravo
Customer: "Yes, do you accept the Discover card?"
Peter (behind podium): "Ha! Hey Lois, 'Diamond Jim Brady' over here just asked if we accept Discover card!"
Lois (from kitchen): "OOOOH, they're in an exclusive club called 'anybody!'"
Peter: "Yeah! No, no no, I don't think so. You know, I would rather take two live chickens than your fly-by-night credit card. I would rather take a jar of pennies that's value is less than the amount of your bill."
Customer: "Well you don't have to insult me!"
Peter: "No, no no, you're gonna stand there and listen to all the funny things I would take instead of your credit card."
I HATE wallets, so I would be a prime candidate for this...as long as it is secure.
@deciBels
Yeah, to be able to trim down the contents of my pocket to a slim candybar phone would be great. And a handkerchief of course.
We aren't yet at a 100% cashless society just yet, and maybe that's a good thing. Lots of issues with giving a bank 100% control over your every transaction, and charging you a small tax on it.
closer to japan. yay.
I think this would be cool if deployed almost everywhere.
Cool
Identity theft has never been easier.
@Dante of the Inferno Don't you mean credit card theft? Unless you keep your social security card digitally scanned into your phone along with your mother's maiden name and a copy of your signature... THEN it's identity theft
@Dante of the Inferno
Pretty much this
What about at restaurants? Do you put your phone down in lieu of your credit card? Some how I don't like the idea of someone I don't know handling my phone.
@liquidkernel
:rolleyes: Then give them your card. This is more for something quick, like vending machines, supermarket checkout, etc, where you're more likely to have your phone out.
But giving your credit card to someone you don't know for them to take away out of your sight and potentially scan for future use and sale while you continue your conversation is OK? It amazes me how many people happily let strangers walk off with their credit cards and then insist they'd never do something like this phone payment or buy online because it's too insecure. Several other commenters have already covered how this payment method is actually safer.
And I don't think you'd hand your phone over, I would imagine you'd be able to complete the transaction almost anywhere in the store or restaurant. If not, just go up to the counter and do it without ever letting go of your phone.
@pika2000 If this is being proposed as a _replacement_ for carrying credit cards, what gave you the thought that I was suggesting putting down your phone when you already have a credit card in your wallet? Non sequitur, much?
@Yankiwi Karin How else do you pay for something at a restaurant then w/o giving it to the wait staff? My concern is for wait staff HANDLING my phone, not running off with my phone
@Darkroom Oh great, now a thief only needs to steal my phone, not my wallet.
Password protected credit card? Yes please.
@ehvio With an easily findable default password/cracking/rooting utility online...
@deciBels
I'm in but I've got zero interest in paying for the privilege. Hopefully this is heavily subsidized between the involved companies and not something the consumer is going to jacked on.
@augustjl
Somehow the South Koreans and other Asian countries have been able to integrate this technology into their society.
Plastic isn't even safe, what make me want this?
@cdf74dc9
Maybe you can secure it with a password.
@cdf74dc9 Because unlike plastic, this could be internally secured with a passcode or biometrics.
@MikeJF
You're right on that. It just a little more secure than bring plastic card around, but the problem remain how it actually work. If it just display your credit card information on-screen then that is a fail (I can easily fake that). If they had an additional add-ons hardware (much like the iphone credit card add-ons) that verified the information then it might work.
@cdf74dc9 Helps when you read the article. It states that you would have to have a chip installed in your phone.
"This would require all-new readers for merchants and embedded NFC chips in phones, but we reckon plenty of people might be happy to pay a small premium to streamline their lives that little bit more and leave the plastic behind."
Please read articles before commenting.
@Darkroom
I completely agree.
A good idea, yes.
Any premium, however small to the bank or the networks. ---- NO, NO, NO.
Now a even better reason for someone to steal my phone!
I see many security issue's coming in the near future! I love technology! =D
Another way for Big Brother to keep tabs on you. Mobile phones will become the mark of The Beast
@KaotikEvolution You may want to consider investing in what this site has to offer.
http://www.stopabductions.com/
@augustjl At least most phones are equipped with GPS and can be tracked, unlike a normal card where all you can do is cancel it which may not be so easy. Most smartphones also include a remote wipe... which would let you prevent further transactions without the hassle of calling the card company.
So with this in mind, I think I'd prefer it in my phone. Of course, I don't think I'll be lending my phone to anyone.
iPhone
It isn't the 3 biggest carriers. Sprint is the 3rd biggest, way ahead of T-Mobile.
@cloud858rk they never said that, read the post. They said three of the top four.
@Rudolphe22 Actually, they did initially say "when the three biggest US carriers decide to unite behind it," but they changed it later.
@Darkroom I wouldn't consider having a credit card built into my phone, it sounds to risky right now and there are apps that could access alot of data now, so I will pass on this.. Oh yeah engadget last timer I checked t-mobile was not a part of the top 3 wireless companies in the us I'm pretty sure sprint had more subscribers than t-mobile, so if you could fix that typo it would be appreciated...
Since when was swiping a card so incredibly inconvenient?
Man, carrying AND a cell phone is just too much work. Yes please, consolidate everything, especially my financial transactions onto the same insecure device that's spied on by the NSA, tracks my every move, contains contact information to every person I know, and is easily identifiable specifically to me. How could this ever possibly come back to hurt me?
@arise257 Man, carrying *a wallet* AND...
@arise257
Tell me this, are tin foil hats as uncomfortable to wear as they look?
@burnt bacon memorial highway
Right, burnt bacon, just roll your eyes at everything I said because it clearly isn't true. What was I thinking -- bringing facts and foresight to the discussion when clearly, convenience is what matters more?
Then when you consider something like this is commercially available:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IMSI-catcher
You begin to realize how insanely stupid it is bring financial transactions onto your cell phone, in America... Land of the highest crime rates, shittiest network security and most fraudulent financial services. I'm all for progress but really, it works in Japan and South Korea because their cultures are totally, TOTALLY different from ours. The only real similarity is capitalism, that's it.
@arise257
Because the NSA can't just look at your bank account?
Hoping that's a Mr. Blurrycam photo of the new HTC Incredible 2.
I don't fancy this idea.
@Mike10010100 I think we would still find a way to screw it up.All it takes is one person to leave their phone unattended in Lexington, KY, have a bunch of felonious charges, probably tubs Oralgel, and a Fox affiliate does a story on it. And then the cascading effect of annoying news from affiliate stations goes down to other Fox stations, to the NBC, to Engadget, to Michelle Norris talking about it on NPR. This would installs the fear into every Samsung Moment owning mom in Canyon Country of having her account "hacked" and charged with a three month subscription to XL Girls.
And wasn't there an article recently about how some guy built something to easily harvest data from gsm phones?
@skinnyguy
And a guy can hack an ATM machine via remote desktop from his laptop, collecting your card info and PIN, and able to do transfers too.
Soon you won't be owning your mobile phone; your mobile phone will own you!
@Greg More like the wireless carriers will own your wallet.
Question is, am I in control of that payment system? Is it just an add-on on a special case, or is it embedded inside the phone's circuit? Can I take it out/disable it (via software on the phone) when needed? Can I interchange it with whatever phone I'm using? What happen if I switch carrier? Do people want their e-wallet be provider-locked too?