Biometric Payment Arrives in a Store Near You

Posted by ryuzaki0 on Saturday June 24, 2006 @06:12AM from the new-string-of-finger-thefts dept.

"A chain of Florida convenience stores has begun accepting fingerprints as payment, using a biometric system called Pay By Touch. The company is a Bay-area startup backed by $130 million in VC cash and the acquisition of BioPay, a Virginia-based biometrics firm that's already done $7 billion in European transactions. From the article: 'The company is a bit puzzled by customer privacy fears. After all, they say, how can using a unique fingerprint for identification be riskier to theft than a plastic card, key chain token, or account number? ...The fingerprint image recorded is not the same as those collected by the federal government or law enforcement.'"

2 of 206 comments (clear)

Min score:

Reason:

Sort:

Uhh... by Poromenos1 · 2006-06-24 06:13 · Score: 5, Insightful

how can using a unique fingerprint for identification be riskier to theft than a plastic card, key chain token, or account number?

Because you leave them on everything you touch?

--
Send email from the afterlife! Write your e-will at Dead Man's Switch.
1. Re:Uhh... by MarkByers · 2006-06-24 06:20 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  And you can't cancel (change) your fingerprint if someone finds out what it is.
  
  --
  I'll probably be modded down for this...