Google Pay biometric authentication integrated into Checkout.com for digital payments

An announcement from Checkout.com says it has become the first digital payments provider to integrate Google Pay’s secure biometric authentication service into its payment processing service for merchants.

As “the first to partner with Google for this new service and bring it to market,” Checkout.com will offer Google Pay’s biometric authentication for increased efficiency and conversion rates. Using device-based biometric checks like a PIN, password and facial recognition, it promises “a streamlined alternative to other authentication methods, where a customer verifies their identity with a one-time passcode and, in the process, is often redirected to multiple different pages.”

The integration means that when a customer attempts a purchase on a company website or app through Checkout.com, it connects to Google Pay and initiates a request to authenticate. A biometric prompt such as a facial or fingerprint scan or device PIN are required to complete a challenge requirement. Successful authentication occurs when Google Pay passes a token and cryptogram bundle back to Checkout.com, where the purchase is completed.

“Essentially, Google Pay has modularized this service, which can be invoked by the merchants via Checkout.com,” says the announcement.

‍Guillaume Pousaz, CEO of Checkout.com, calls the deployment “a significant leap forward in authentication, directly tackling the primary performance challenges faced by merchants with the existing 3DS solutions. Through this innovation, we’re the first PSP to pioneer a digital wallet-like experience driven by biometric authentication.”

Vice President and General Manager of Google Pay ‍‍Ben Volk, says the company is “always looking for ways to improve the checkout experience for shoppers while reducing cart abandonment rates for merchants.” The streamlined system has already sped up the checkout process for some merchants by 30 percent, and increased the authentication rate by five percent.

“The speed of transactions and seamless payment flow is crucial in the travel industry because airline ticket prices change in real-time,” says Grzegorz Kwiecień, head of payments and fraud prevention at eSky Group, a Checkout.com client. “Faster checkout with frictionless authentication means customers can secure their tickets at the best available prices.”

Checkout.com is also offering integration of its AI-based dynamic routing (or “Intelligent Acceptance”) system, which selects the optimal authentication option for each merchant and transaction, reducing it to as few as three steps.

Article Topics

biometric authentication  |  biometric payments  |  biometrics  |  Checkout.com  |  Google  |  Google Pay