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NTT DoCoMo Debuts Credit Card Phone

Posted by samzenpus on from the my-phone-is-maxed-out dept.

Scott S. writes "NTT DoCoMo Unveils its new phone allowing a simply wave to pay for items at the supermarket, rent movies, get airplane tickets and more. The i-mode FeliCa serves as a "mobile wallet" that detects weak electronic signals from a reader/writer and can be used when the phone is off. Credit card phones have been an idea in the past and leave it to the Japanese to make one."

4 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. "a simple wave"?!? by El · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Just remember NOT to wave at those hookers you see standing on the street corner...


    But seriously, shouldn't a monetary transaction require a signature and/or a passcode, not just a gesture? How close does this have to be to the reader in order to bill my account? It would appear that there would be tremendous potential for ringing up unintentional charges when using a remote reader for payment.

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    "Freedom means freedom for everybody" -- Dick Cheney

  2. Wha? by faqmaster · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Am I the only one who thought, "Credit card phone? Sounds too small."

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    Are you...Are you some kind of genius?
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  3. Re:Fraud? by ComputerSherpa · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Not much of a modification from the current plan: 1. Steal unsuspecting person's wallet 2. Make lots of purchases quickly 3. Ditch wallet and abscond with goods 4. Achieve eternal contentment

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    Information wants to be anthropomorphized!
  4. Fraud... without stealing someone's phone. by ankhcraft · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The i-mode FeliCa serves as a "mobile wallet" that detects weak electronic signals from a reader/writer and can be used when the phone is off. I wish I could find the original article I read about this technology some months back. The main concern of the technology's proponents at the time of writing was this: What if someone obtained a reader/writer device and modified it to increase the signal strength? Then, this person would theoretically be able to rob an entire subway platform full of people simply by walking around them with this device. At the time of the article's writing, the problem had not been solved yet, and supposedly still required additional thought... so, what was the resolution? I haven't read anything as to the solution to this very real threat. Not that a solution doesn't exist, but I haven't seen anything suggesting that a solution has been found and implemented prior to product release. Wots, uh, the deal?

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