Natural Security boasts results of biometric payment pilot test in France

Natural Security has just announced the results of a massive pilot test in France for a new method of payment, which involves payment cards as well as biometric and contactless technology.

The test, performed in partnership with Banque Accord, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, Groupe Auchan, Ingenico and Leroy Merlin. The test lasted from October 2012 to March 2013 and involved more than 900 consumers.

According to the company, fingerprint and finger vein technology were tested in real transactions to evaluate reaction and support process, including data enrolment.

94% of participants said they were ready to use this as a payment option in store and nearly 5,000 transactions were carried out by participants.

The basis of this new system includes biometric data stored on a smart card and mid-range contactless technology for the card to communicate with the payment terminal.

“The Natural Security standard was developed in response to the demand from banks and retailers for a convenient and secure authentication method that can be used across all online and offline channels,” Cedric Hozanne, CEO of Natural Security said. “This pilot has been particularly significant in building our technical knowledge of how the standard works in real life transactions, as well as our understanding of customer behaviours and reactions. We’ll be using the results to feed into future development, but undoubtedly it’s been a success. Consumers are ready for this new type of payment method.”

Reported previously in BiometricUpdate.com, Natural Security recently announced a partnership with dining services fim Spartan Shops to implement a biometric access control system at San Jose state University in California.

The company has also recently published its own privacy rules and best practice guidelines, following the trials in France in with San Jose University. 

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fingerprint  |  Natural Security