Biometric cards equipped with built-in fingerprint sensors have the potential to make payments both safer and easier, but the technology is still new and there are critical elements that need to be put in place to ensure widespread adoption, NXP explains in a white paper now available to download from the NFCW Knowledge Centre.

Fingerprint on card (FPoC) technology is unfamiliar to consumers and adds another dimension to the transaction, NXP explains in the paper.

“Some people may be reluctant to make the change and may be slow to adopt using the FPoC format for payments. The question, then, is whether FPoC cards will catch on.

“We think FPoC cards will, indeed, become the norm — as long as they deliver three things:

• High level security — so everyone trusts that private information, including fingerprint data, is stored safely on the FPoC card and protected from theft or manipulation
• Seamless operation — to prevent frustration at the payment terminal
• Cost-effective production and deployment — to make the card itself affordable to deliver

“There are several approaches to implementing FPoC technology and they vary in their ability to deliver all three of these criteria,” NXP says.

“There are different hardware architectures, different approaches to power management, different requirements for handling components and connections during production, and different methods for registering (or enrolling) fingerprints prior to putting cards to use.”

“This paper offers insights into the success factors of a biometric card and shows how FPoC cards can be designed so they ensure increased security, fastest performance, and highest integration.”

‘What’s next for payment cards — An introduction to biometric authentication and fingerprint on card technology’ is available to download free of charge from the NFCW Knowledge Centre.

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