Consumers want to see biometric authentication options for their smartphones and tablets as a way of protecting themselves from mobile threats, according to a Zogby poll featured in an article in Investor Ideas. The poll also showed that people are reliant on their smartphones for making purchases and conducting other financial transactions while at the same time the vast majority of smartphone users do little to secure their devices.
More than half of those surveyed would be willing to use fingerprint authentication for smartphone security. Users were also interested in retinal scans and photo identification as a way to provide security authentication. "Using biometric authentication is gaining in popularity because it is perceived that it will be more convenient than passwords," Andy Steingruebl, PayPal's director of ecosystem security, told Jonathan Camhi in a recent article in Bank Systems and Technology.
It is easy to see why, as mobile commerce continues to grow, biometrics would be more convenient than using passwords. The current size and design of smartphones can make simple typing difficult, and passwords — often requiring capitalization, numerics and special characters — can be even more complicated. Many users store passwords on their devices to avoid this annoyance, which is not a good security practice. A fingerprint or retinal scan would encourage users to practice better security habits.
