Skip to main content

5. MasterCard launching selfie payments


Smile for your MasterCard authentication selfie!


MasterCard wants to ditch the old-fashioned password and use selfies to approve online purchases.

The company announced it is launching new mobile technologies that will allow customers to authenticate their online purchases using selfies or fingerprints.

The technology will be rolled out by big banks in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and some European countries over the next few months.

People from around the world will be regularly using this authentication technology within five years, said Ajay Bhalla, president of enterprise security solutions at MasterCard (MA).

Bhalla said that using facial and fingerprint scans for purchases is safer than typed passwords since many customers foolishly use easy-to-guess codes.

Customers who want to try selfie authentication will have to download a special MasterCard app that will allow them to take a photo each time they make an online purchase. Their face (or fingerprint) will be scanned to prove that they -- not hackers or thieves -- are making a purchase.

The scan will verify that it's a legitimate selfie -- instead of a previously taken photo -- by requiring users to blink when they take their own photo.

The fingerprint authentication can be used on new smartphones, including the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S.

MasterCard said it's also working on other ways to authenticate purchases, including monitoring a customer's heartbeat. Iris scans and voice recognition are also being explored.

MasterCard is not alone in introducing new technology to replace typed passwords.

HSBC (HSBC) announced last week that millions of account holders would soon be able to use their voice and fingerprints to access their money.

People who use HSBC's phone banking services will be able to register their voice with the company instead of using a regular password. Special voice biometrics technology will analyze a customer's voice when they call the bank. Even if customers get a cold, the technology should still work.

Customers with the latest iPhones -- which already boast fingerprint login technology -- will be able to access their accounts on their mobile phones using their fingerprint.

CNNMoney (London)
First published February 22, 2016: 12:45 PM ET
Extract from CCN

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Biography- Sofia White

I was born in august 24 of 1992, in Cartago, Costa Rica. I went to school in las Palmas School, Panama. I used to travel with my family from country to country in Central America. In my free time I used to play sports, read books, and travel in the countries. I studied International Relations in Costa Rica, and became an ambassador in Malawi, Africa. I married  a journalist, and we had two kids, they were the loves of my life. During our lives we had the opportunity to travel around the world, specially as an ambassador in a foreign country. We invested in Malawi in a new product which made us rich, we were very happy. This new product develop a new medicine for children, to enrich their immunological system, it made them immune to any disease in the world. This was huge and it made a big difference, we continued developing new products focused on children health. Sofia White

1. Finding Happiness

Once a group of 50 people was attending a seminar. Suddenly the speaker stopped and started giving each person a balloon. Each one was asked to write his/her name on it using a marker pen. Then all the balloons were collected and put in another room. Now these delegates were let in that room and asked to find the balloon which had their name written, within 5 minutes. Everyone was frantically searching for their name, pushing, colliding with each other, and there was utter chaos. At the end of 5 minutes, no one could find their own balloon. Now each one was asked to randomly collect a balloon and give it to the person whose name was written on it. Within minutes everyone had their own balloon. The speaker began: This is exactly happening in our lives. Everyone is frantically looking for happiness all around, not knowing where it is. Our happiness lies in the happiness of other people. Give them their happiness, you will get your own happiness. And this is the purpos...

3. What goes around comes around

One day a man saw an old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn’t look safe; he looked poor and hungry. He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was those chills which only fear can put in you. He said, “I’m here to help you, ma’am. Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.” Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug n...