One Payment App Uses Often-Called Friends To Authenticate. (Privacy? What’s That?)
Written by Evan SchumanFebruary 16th, 2012
A Seattle mobile payment firm is pushing for phone purchases to be done with no PIN, arguing that with this young a market, consumer convenience needs to trump security. Given its focus on authenticating the phone instead of the customer, it's had to get creative and might be pushing the privacy envelope. It examines the five most frequently called friends, for example, along with a list of installed applications.
Whether or not its methods go too far, it's in good company in the mobile early-stage convenience versus security argument, with both PayPal—and its phone-less and card-less purchases at Home Depot—and Visa, which is pushing PIN-less EMV transactions while MasterCard is taking the more secure and less convenient pro-PIN EMV position.
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I have strong reservations about the 'individual' certification and posting of that information for merchants. Can you imagine the potential employee poaching that might occur? The implications when competitors can look up how many are certified with each of their competitors? 
-Christine
