New Smartphone Allows Fingerprint Payment

The Samsung Galaxy S5 smartphone is the first device to enable users to pay with their fingerprints. If users visit a website or app that accepts PayPal using the device, they can authorize payments by swiping a finger across the phone’s home button. “Building a smart biometric experience solves both usability and dramatically increases the security level,” says PayPal’s Joel Yarbrough. The user must first complete a short setup process that registers the identity of the device, based on its cryptographic chip, and links the user’s fingerprint to a PayPal account. PayPal’s software then asks for a fingerprint swipe anytime an app or site would normally show a log-in screen. The new protocol is designed so that a record of the fingerprint never leaves the device. “With the transformation of user interactions with content from local to cloud-based and the collapse of trust in existing authentication mechanisms, a real change is happening,” says former Validity chief technology officer Sebastian Taveau.

[divide] From “Pay With Your Fingerprint”
Technology Review (04/02/14) Simonite, Tom