Paypal has launched its biometric identification service for the Samsung Galaxy S5, meaning consumers in 25 countries can make payments by using their fingerprint.
The payment company said the new function removes the need to enter usernames and passwords. It said millions of businesses accept PayPal payments via websites, mobile apps or in-store.
Hill Ferguson, Chief Product Officer at Paypal, said: “Not only is this way more convenient than typing in a lengthy username and password on a tiny mobile device, it’s also more secure. In fact, it’s a convenience that many consumers are ready for. A recent survey by the National Cyber Security Alliance and PayPal found that more than half (53 percent) of Americans are overwhelmingly comfortable replacing passwords with newer security technologies such as fingerprint authentication.”
Paypal also launched an app for the Galaxy Gear 2 smartwatch and Gear Fit smartband. The app allows consumers to pay in retailers across eight countries, check their balance, get payment notifications and check offers from retailers on their wrist.
Samsung and Paypal’s partnership was first announced at Mobile World Congress in February. The fingerprint authentication service uses software from the Fast Indentity Online Alliance. It hosts a secure wallet on the cloud, meaning the only information shared between the handset and Paypal is a unique encrypted key that verifies who the customer is.
Paypal is anticipating that mobile will help transform retail in 2014, thanks to products such as its Bluetooth Low Energy beacons. Its President David Marcus said: “This year, retailers will start leveraging and converting their retail footprint into logistical assets to enable shoppers to buy anywhere they want: in-store, on mobile, and on the web, and get fast-delivery, or pick-up in store the same day.”
He added: “Many consumers are just beginning to experience the freedom, flexibility, and fun of mobile payments and shopping, and they’re going to want more. This will lead to a flood of new payment experiences built on technologies such as sensors, geolocation, and the cloud that will soon make standing in a long checkout line and paying with a card seem like something out of the Stone Age.”
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