Android phones could replace credit cards

Many people use their credit cards and debit cards to pay for purchases when they go shopping, and this is partly because of the convenience and ease that this method of payment offers. However, according to officials from Google, smart phones with the next version of the Google Android Operating System could end up replacing credit cards as a method of payment in High street stores, coffee shops, and other retail establishments.

More and more people are opting for smart phones these days, and the next version of the Google Android smart phone Operating System called Gingerbread, is set to have a Tap and Pay feature on built into it. This feature will allow users to pay for things by simply tapping their smart phone against a specialist reader thus eliminating the need to use a credit card.

The technology was demonstrated recently in San Francisco by the CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, who said that he was working on an unannounced device that would incorporate Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, which is the technology that makes Tap and Pay possible. The technology ensures that credit card details are passed securely between smart phone and reader when the two are tapped together. It is the same technology that is used in existing tap and pay cards that do not require a PIN or signature.

One official said that the uptake of tap and pay enabled smart phones might be slow to start with because people would be a little cautious about using the new technology, but he said that it would most likely pick up quickly.

He stated: “Adoption of NFC smartphones could be slow at first because some people will naturally be hesitant about this revolutionary new way of paying for everyday goods.”

Tags: Technology, street, likely pick, device, version

August retail sales levels cause surprise

According to recent reports industry officials were pleasantly surprised recently when data showed that there had been an unexpected surge in retail sales levels for the month of August. The rise in retail sales levels was not a huge one, but many industry experts had been expecting sales levels to fall by around 0.5%, so the increase of 1.2% in high street sales came as good news. The figures came from the Office for National Statistics. Read more

Tags: street, retail sales, consumer, Marketing and Advertising, school period, overstretched household budgets, sales, increase

Consumers need to do a ’shopping list’ before choosing a bank account

Consumers need to create a “shopping list” to help them choose a bank account which suits them best, one financial expert has claimed.

The British Bankers Association (BBA) recommends that spenders need to look beyond the headline rate when examining the pros and cons of various bank accounts to ensure that they are aware of any conditions or limitations that apply.

Brain Capon, a spokesperson for the BBA, said: “When opening any account, regardless of who it is with – a British bank or a bank that is based abroad, you need to really decide what it is that you want from that bank overall.”

He added that the fact increasing numbers of banks from abroad are offering accounts in the UK is a good thing as competition between providers can enable consumers to get better deals.

According to the latest figures released for Britain’s high street banks, personal deposits have shown stronger growth than past months. The figures, from January 2008, show that the net change was up by £2.9 billion.

Tags: high street banks, Financial services, Bachelor of Business Administration, finance, Deposit account, street, spenders, consumers

Home chip and pin can help tackle card fraud

Home chip and pin readers are a useful tool in tackling the widespread problem of credit card fraud, industry body Apacs said today.

Online transactions are to be made safer by the handheld devices – over half a million of which are to be sent out by the end of the year.

The chip and pin machines are aimed at reducing the card-not-present fraud concerning online transactions, which increased by 16 per cent from 2005 to 2006 – results out of line with the overall three per cent drop in fraud for the period.

Mark Bowerman, a spokesperson for Apacs, said: “What the device has the potential to be used for in the future is also internet shopping transactions and telephone shopping transactions.

“They’re very easy to use,” he added. “They’re just like a small handheld calculator. You just put your chip and pin card in it and tap your four-digit pin in and then a number comes up on the display screen.”

British bank Barclays has already announced that it is to send out the handheld readers to online banking customers later in the year, with other high street banks also launching similar schemes.

Tags: industry body apacs, street, internet shopping transactions, internet, industry

Chip and pin scare

Fears are growing that criminals may soon be able to collect customer information from doctored chip and pin machines.

Credit card holders could be targeted if thieves get their hands on the information which was discovered by a specialist research team at Cambridge University.

The team claims to have achieved its goal of reconfiguring a machine, allowing it to copy personal account and pin numbers.

This information can then be used to create fake cards, leaving consumers vulnerable to theft from their account.

It took just one month and £1,000 for the researchers to crack the system, with team members saying that all of the information and equipment is available over the internet from computer manufacturers.

The researchers specialise in testing the security of electronic hardware and the payments association Apacs says it is unlikely that the scam will be carried out on the high street.

An Apacs statement said: “People could, in theory, use this to steal account details from cards. Our experts are in discussion with the manufacturers of terminals to see what can be done.”

Tags: GBP, information, economics, scare, security, pin scare

Banks’ January sales scam

Consumers are being warned that banks are trying to fool them with so-called new year sales, says an industry expert.

A number of high street banks have launched special deals this week, claiming to offer consumers attractive rates on a number of products.

However, consumer campaigner and founder of moneysavingexpert.com Martin Lewis says the sales are nothing more than a “great scam”.

“I have not seen anything I would describe as a sale,” said Mr Lewis. “A sale is a period when you get better deals. This is a bank promotion to look like a shop sale.

“What you are actually seeing is the big four high street banks, who are hideously overpriced normally, doing some price reduction so that they are now only over priced.”

Mr Lewis went on to say that consumers should give most of the banks’ sale items a miss and aired his anger at the behaviour of some of the leading banks.

“It is a great scam. You are more expensive than the market place, so you reduce prices and call it a sale,” he added.

Tags: industry expert, price, com, january sales, street, consumers attractive rates, behaviour, bank