Use Your PDA As A Secure 'Wallet'

aphor writes "The The Infrared Data Association has drafted a standard for IrDA "Point and Pay" devices. Its called Infrared Financial Messaging (IrFM) Point & Pay, and its supposed to turn your handheld computer or cell phone into a digital wallet that can handle credit card, debit, check [and maybe even secure anonymous digital cash ala CyberCash?] transactions. I think this is significant, because instead of trusting a closed device like a smart card or magstripe on a credit card (we all know the problems with those), you receive a challenge from the vendor on your IR port, and you control how your device responds to it. Palm OS and Linux are specifically mentioned in their documentation as platforms for IrFM Point-and-Pay. BTW: I can't see anything that would prevent turning your Palm device into a handheld cash register. The specs for their protocol can be downloaded for free."