Retailers give electronic payments the finger

Imagine a day when the only item you'll need to take to the supermarket to complete a transaction is your index finger. The concept is already a reality in a limited capacity in some places around the world but observers believe the technology could become main stream by 2012, reports ZDNet.

Using biometric scanning to make transactions is expected to be one of many new methods that are part of a revolution in payments technology already taking place. The long-held reign of the swipe-and-sign plastic cards now appears to be weakening with retailers and other players considering other ways to make the payment process both more secure and faster.

In the US, NCR Corporation, a 123-year-old maker of cash registers, is already providing registers to retailers that include fingerprint scanner locks for staff to reduce loss and time-attendance fraud. NCR said the next phase of the technology is to get customers feeling comfortable with the idea of using their biological information to make casual purchases.

The US government's growing appetite for biometrics-based ID systems to bolster security, detect terrorists, fight crime and control illegal immigration is generating billions of dollars in opportunities for an evolving industry that's coming of age in the post-9/11 era, says MiamiHerald.

The growth of the identification industry also has spawned an aggressive push-back from privacy advocates against what they call an emerging industrial surveillance complex. Regardless of the perspective, few would deny that the expanding government market for more secure identification programs is laden with business potential.

Players range from big-name defence contractors to specialty firms largely unknown to the public. And the product line includes now-commonplace offerings that might have seemed possible only on an episode of Star Trek just a decade or so ago.

The Australian federal government will expand its $62 million SmartGate automated border control programme across Australia despite fears the passport biometric photo-matching technology is flawed and will cause chaos at airports, says Australian IT News.

Legal obstacles to the SmartGate rollout were resolved last week when an amendment bill was passed in the Senate with Labour support. But parliamentary debate revisited an embarrassing list of technical and security problems that have plagued the pilot since it began at Sydney Airport in 2002.

Former customs minister Chris Ellison said SmartGate would enhance the verification of passengers' identities. "These new processes will aid in combating identity fraud and deter the use of forged or stolen passports. Automated clearance at the border will allow greater volumes of passengers to be processed more quickly, while maintaining the integrity of border control."

Fingerprint technology straight out of a James Bond movie has set a Lancashire firm on course to fire its expansion plans. Bosses at UK Biometrics Ltd, which has its regional base in Chorley, have revealed plans to take on 10 more staff over the next two years to cope with a boom in demand for keyless access systems, reports the Lancashire Evening Post.

The firm specialises in manufacturing and fitting everything from systems which recognise individual fingerprints to traditional keys, fobs or swipe cards. Regional director Peter Stone said: "The situation with biometric systems here in Lancashire is comparable to the start of the mobile phone boom."

"Our business plan is based upon a conservative model and current levels of interest in our products," Stone added. "The next two years will be tremendously exciting as we introduce new products and I believe we will smash our current turnover prediction."