MasterCard to Roll Out ‘Selfie’ Passwords Soon

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MasterCard is about to radically change how you use the company’s app to make payments.

Starting this summer, customers in a dozen countries can make mobile payments by simply snapping a selfie to verify their identity.

In a CBS News report, Cheryl Guerin, MasterCard executive vice president of products and solutions, offered details about the cutting-edge approach to making payments:

“The technology basically assigns a value to your face, the shape, the exact length of your nose, etcetera.”

The company has announced that in addition to face recognition, it will test a variety of authentication methods, including voice recognition and cardiac rhythm, which will be checked through a wristband.

MasterCard is not the only company planning to use selfie technology. Earlier this month, Money Talks News reported that Amazon.com recently filed a patent for a pay-by-selfie system.

Other companies are developing similar technologies to identify customers, including fingerprint scans, palm scans and iris scans, CBS reports. All of this is being done in the name of convenience and enhancing the security of online data.

What do you think of “selfie” passwords and other types of cutting-edge authentication methods? Sound off in our Forums. It’s the place where you can speak your mind, explore topics in-depth, and post questions and get answers.

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