Mastercard and BMO make Fingerprint and ‘Selfie’ Payment Technology a Reality in North America

New biometric app for commercial use available in the U.S. and Canada 

Mastercard announced the North American rollout of Identity Check Mobile™, a new payment technology application that uses biometrics, including fingerprint and facial recognition, to verify a cardholder’s identity and simplify online shopping. BMO Financial Group (BMO) will be the first bank in the U.S. and Canada to offer Identity Check Mobile to its corporate customers starting in the first half of 2017.

The rollout of Identity Check Mobile follows a successful soft launch that Mastercard and BMO tested earlier this year. The post-soft launch survey of BMO biometric program participants found:

• Three of every four (74 percent) of participants strongly agree that biometrics are easier to use than passwords.
• Nine out of ten participants anticipate using biometrics for online payment security in the future.

“The pilot tested the potential of delivering greater security and convenience using biometric technology. Our goals were to understand the attitudes and perceptions of our participants toward biometrics as an online payment security solution,” said Steve Pedersen, vice president, head, North American Corporate Card Products at BMO. “After using Identity Check Mobile, our program participants gave strong reviews on biometric security and ease of use, especially as compared with passwords. We are looking forward to bringing this same experience to our clients in 2017.”

Existing BMO commercial customers who opt-in to using Identity Check Mobile will use an app provided by BMO and Mastercard to verify their online purchases. While shopping the cardholder will be notified instantly by the app when he or she needs to verify an online purchase by swiping a fingerprint or snapping a selfie photo.

Often, existing identity verification methods take shoppers away from a retailer’s website or mobile app where a password is required. The process can be time consuming and can result in a shopper abandoning his/her purchase or having the transaction declined if the password is incorrect.

Mastercard Identity Check Mobile minimizes the need for passwords, dramatically speeding the digital checkout process while also improving security. A cardholder can verify his/her identity by using the fingerprint scanner or facial recognition technology (aka taking a selfie photo) on his/her smart phone with the Identity Check app.

“Making the online payment experience near frictionless and more secure is a priority for Mastercard,” said Ajay Bhalla, president of Enterprise Risk & Security, Mastercard. “Moving this technology beyond the pilot phase is a significant milestone in the evolution of payments. Online payments are being revolutionized; and now we are making Identity Check Mobile a reality for commercial use in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and soon, the world.” 

The U.S. and Canada availability of Identity Check Mobile follows the recent European rollout across 12 markets, including: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the U.K. The technology will continue to be made available worldwide in phased rollouts throughout 2017. 

In the U.S. and as part of the White House “Lock Down Your Login” public awareness campaign, Mastercard committed to developing solutions that eliminate static passwords, utilizing biometrics to make payments safe and simple.

About Mastercard

Mastercard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology company in the global payments industry.  We operate the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories.  Mastercard products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone.  Follow us on Twitter @MastercardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.