Transaction Trends

Consumers in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia are unsure about the safety and security of biometric payments, a recent study from ETA member Transaction Network Services (TNS) has found. While security concerns have fallen slightly since 2016, the report says, 61 percent of adults surveyed said they believed providing companies with their fingerprint and iris information put their personal identity information at risk.

Younger cohorts’ security concerns have grown as older generations are assuaged, the report found. Where 63 percent of consumers aged 18-24 had concerns in 2016, 66 percent have concerns in 2018. For those aged 25-34 years old, security concerns rose five points between 2016 and 2018, from 64 percent to 69 percent. Among US consumers, the report found that trust in biometric payments to prevent fraud decreased significantly from 2016.

It’s not all doom and gloom for biometrics payments. 61 percent of consumers, including 57 percent of Americans, believe that biometric payments from a fingerprint, iris scan or facial scan will increase financial security by reducing fraud. Further, 68 percent of consumers surveyed said they believed biometric payments will become more commonplace within 2-5 years.

And biometric payments usage among consumers aged 18-25 is higher than average, the report found. One in four young consumers uses biometric payments, compared to 15 percent of the consumers on average.

Among biometric types, the report found consumers were most fond of fingerprints, with 56 percent of consumers saying they would be willing to make a biometric identifier with their finger. Only 42 percent were willing to use veins maps in hands, a comparatively nascent biometric. Though advanced in smart devices have brought advanced facial scanning to many consumers, only 50 percent of those surveyed said they would use them for biometric payments. Iris scans, particularly among British and Australian consumers, were more popular than facial scans.

“Our data also highlights a significant decline in trust among US adults with increasing numbers reporting security concerns and a large reduction in the number of Americans who feel biometric payments will help to increase financial security by reducing fraud,” the report concluded. “Organizations wishing to target the US biometric payments market would find it hugely beneficial to tailor their products and marketing campaigns to allay these fears and build trust in biometric payments.”