Contactless payments are taking off - why Identity-Bound Biometrics are Essential for Authentication

--News Direct--

When Amazon Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) launched Amazon One — its contactless payment system — it put payments in the palm of your hand. But Amazon is not the only company offering advanced payment and identity verification technology.

People are on the lookout for more convenient ways to pay — it’s a win when you don’t have to carry multiple cards or remember passwords. Amazon One and other virtual payment systems make that kind of convenience a reality. At the same time, concerns around data privacy increase as customers face the possibility of sharing personal data.

Biometric authentication, such as palm scanning, gains popularity every day and is considered a more secure and superior method that should be part of any holistic multi-factor authentication (MFA) strategy.

Biometrics-based technology uses physical attributes such as fingerprint, palm, retina or face scanning to authenticate the user. Unlike traditional MFA strategies of log-in credentials or one-time passwords (OTP) sent via SMS, biometrics are less vulnerable to hacking, social engineering, account takeovers, and damaging cyberattacks.

Credit card companies Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA) and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) have gotten on board with this trend and enabled contactless payments and biometrics-based authentication for their transactions. Other digital wallet apps like PayPal Holdings Inc.’s (NASDAQ: PYPL) Venmo and Zelle have become players in contactless transactions as well.

Reports show that almost 74% of consumers have a positive attitude toward biometrics for access control, and the market for contactless biometric technology is projected to reach $18.6 billion by 2026 according to KBV Research.

Companies like BIO-key International Inc. (NASDAQ: BKYI) — with expertise in identity and access management (IAM) and Identity-Bound Biometric (IBB) solutions — could play a big role in providing secure, easy-to-use authentication options for organizations while eliminating the high costs associated with traditional methods.

BIO-key boasts a one-of-a-kind MFA mobile app — MobileAuth™ — that integrates the power of IBB across multiple authentication modalities, allowing customers to build a more complete MFA strategy.

The app can safeguard critical data by authenticating the person with IBB using PalmPositive™ which uses a palm scan, or FacePositive(™) which uses facial recognition. The app also supports traditional MFA methods including Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iOS or Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android device-based biometrics and push tokens. It provides flexibility for employees, customers, and suppliers to choose from multiple, easy-to-use options to authenticate while offering the superior security and convenience that is offered by IBB methods.

The company says that a key use case for MobileAuthTM is customer identity and access management (CIAM), scaling access to millions of customer identities with no additional hardware required.

“With cybercrime on a steady rise, it’s more important than ever to have a strong, easy-to-use, and affordable multi-factor authentication strategy in place," said Michael DePasquale, BIO-key’s chairman, and CEO. “We’re at a critical point in the evolution of authentication where stronger solutions must include a factor that’s based on ‘who you are.’ We’re extremely proud to address this need by empowering our customers to take full advantage of traditional authentication methods as well as Identity-Bound Biometrics from the convenience of any mobile device using MobileAuth.”

To learn more about BIO-key MobileAuth, Identity-Bound Biometrics, and PortalGuard, visit the BIO-key website.

BIO-key is revolutionizing authentication and cybersecurity with biometric-centric, multi-factor identity and access management (IAM) software managing millions of users. Its cloud-based PortalGuard IAM solution provides cost-effective, easy to deploy, convenient and secure access to devices, information, applications, and high-value transactions. BIO-key's patented software and hardware solutions, with industry-leading Identity-Bound Biometric (IBB) capabilities, enable large-scale Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) solutions, as well as customized on premises solutions.

This post contains sponsored advertising content. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice.

Catalyst IR- William Jones, David Collins

+1 212-924-9800

BKYI@catalyst-ir.com

https://www.bio-key.com/

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