SmartMetric incorporates NFC into biometric chip card

SmartMetric has incorporated Near Field Communication (NFC) technology into its fingerprint activated biometric chip card, aimed at financial institutions.

“This will enable institutions to offer a safer NFC solution than that which is currently available since the NFC Biometric Card will only be turned on allowing NFC communication to be inactive until the user touches the cards fingerprint sensor,” Chaya Hendrick, SmartMetric President and CEO said. “All other NFC technologies are inherently unsafe in that the device is always on providing hackers the ability to capture the NFC information even while the NFC product is not being used. Smartphones are a good example of ‘unsafe’ NFC systems.”

According to the company, its NFC biometric chip card solution is a more secure option than many on the market today as it is only turned on at the point of transaction, rather than something that is on and connected all the time, leaving itself open to malicious attacks.

The company is also in the midst of a patent infringement case involving Visa and MasterCard, in reference to contract chip cards and their use in the United States. According to a statement from the company, SmartMetric contends that the use of EMV cards in the U.S. is a violation of its own issued patent. The trial is set to conclude in August of this year.

Reported previously, SmartMetric recently launched its fingerprint-activated USB keyring, designed for the storage of medical records and information.

Last year, the company announced it received additional funding from private investors and that another million dollars would be added into the company chest to help fund expansion projects in Beunos Aires.

Article Topics

biometric cards  |  EMV  |  fingerprint  |  NFC  |  SmartMetric