Worldpay Looks Into Facial Recognition Transaction Tech

U.K. payments firm Worldpay is eyeing a new tactic to combat card fraud.

The company announced Tuesday (Sept. 29) its researchers are investigating the use of facial recognition technology to help keep payments secure.

According to a press release, Worldpay created a prototype of its Pin Entry Device Camera (PED Cam) that utilizes a card terminal equipped with an upward-facing camera to take a photograph of a consumer when they enter their PIN during a transaction. The image is then generated into a biometric template that is linked to the consumer card information.

Each time the consumer uses the card at these specific card terminals, a fresh image is captured, thus allowing the technology to learn the profile of the user over time and enhance identification capabilities.

[bctt tweet=”Worldpay looks to bring facial recognition to secure transactions.”]

“This image is automatically cross-referenced against the biometric template already captured and recorded in the system, providing a second layer of authentication to verify the identity of the card user,” the release stated.

The biometric templates are stored in a secure, central database managed by Worldpay, the company added.

“Biometrics has attracted a lot of attention, but achieving sufficient scale has always been difficult in a face-to-face environment. It’s partly because of cost but also because people don’t want the admin hassle of registering their details,” Nick Telford-Reed, Worldpay’s director of technology innovation, explained during a speech at Worldpay’s Better Business Conference last week.

“With this prototype, we would remove that hassle. Card users could be automatically enrolled in the system when they use their card. The design also means retailers would not have to find space for another device on their already busy sales counters,” Telford-Reed said.

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