New Zealand shoppers could soon be able to make purchases using only their face or palm, following the launch of a new generation of biometric payment terminals by Eftpos New Zealand.
According to a report by news.com.au, the company has introduced Verifone Victa, an Android-based payment terminal designed to support facial and palm recognition technology for cardless transactions. While the supporting infrastructure is not yet available in New Zealand, the company says the technology is ready for future rollout.
In a statement, Eftpos New Zealand said the new terminals would support more than just payments.
“The hardware is ready to support face and palm recognition at the point of sale, enabling cardless payments, seamless loyalty authentication, and age verification without physical ID,” as quoted by news.com.au.
The company added that although biometric payments are not yet operational in the country, the devices are already equipped for future use.
“The infrastructure to support this functionality is not yet available in New Zealand, but while biometric-enabled payments may be the payments of tomorrow, Victa is ready today,” news.com.au has quoted.
In addition to processing payments, the terminals are designed to verify a customer's age for purchases such as alcohol and tobacco and automatically connect shoppers with retailer loyalty programmes.
Speaking to RNZ, Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young said her initial reaction to the technology was one of surprise.
“I can use my face, how’s my face going to know my bank account?” she said.
Young explained that many consumers already use biometric authentication without realising it.
“But I think if we think a little bit, there are some biometric payments that already take place. So for example, I often read books on my iPad. I bought a book last night after I’d finished another book and my confirmation of payment was my fingerprint because my card is already loaded into my iPad and it says ‘confirm, press your fingerprint here ’, and I press my fingerprint; that’s a biometric payment. So the details are already there,” as quoted by news.com.au.
She also highlighted how the technology could simplify loyalty programmes by removing the need for customers to verbally share personal information at the checkout.
Using the example of a retail loyalty scheme, Young said, “Say you belong to the Farmers loyalty program, and you’re at the counter at the moment, and they ask you if you belong to the loyalty programme and you give them your email address or phone number,” news.com.au has quoted.
She added, “If your data that’s already on your phone, that includes your email, is hooked in appropriately, you don’t have to publicly give that, or the intention is that you won’t have to publicly give that to someone else in the line, it would pass through seamlessly,” as quoted by news.com.au.
Eftpos New Zealand said proof-of-concept trials have already been completed and retailers will be able to introduce the biometric features when they choose.
The company noted that the platform is designed to evolve through software updates rather than replacing hardware.
“The device can be updated to accept emerging payment methods and extended with third-party apps,” as quoted by news.com.au.
It added, “Merchants can deploy off-the-shelf integrations for loyalty, digital wallets, and on-device marketing campaigns. Businesses can also build purpose-built apps tailored to their needs, taking advantage of Victa’s hardware capabilities including the built-in barcode scanner and cameras to create a fully customised checkout experience,” news.com.au. has quoted.
Highlighting security, Eftpos New Zealand said the platform had been designed to meet high industry standards.
“New capabilities arrive through software, not new hardware. The same device that takes a card payment today can run a POS app, scan a loyalty barcode, or verify a customer’s identity tomorrow,” as quoted by news.com.au.
Responding to privacy concerns, Kristy Gregory, Head of Merchant Sales and Strategic Partners at Eftpos New Zealand, told the New Zealand Herald that users' biometric information would remain protected. “The data sits with their chosen consumer platform, governed by the same privacy regulations that apply to any other digital service.”
Gregory added that public awareness would be essential as the technology becomes more widely available.
“Quite a lot of education and language needs to be used so that everybody understands what it means,” as quoted by news.com.au.