Paypal Rolls Out Photo Verification Trial In UK 61
kdryer39 writes "Retailers in Richmond upon Thames are among the first to allow shoppers to leave their wallets at home and pay for items using just the PayPal app and their profile picture. The app for iOS, Windows OS and Android phones highlights nearby shops and restaurants that accept PayPal before the customer checks in by clicking on the required retailer and sliding an animated pin down on their screen. At present, only 12 merchants are using the system but it expects more than 2,000 locations will have the ability to use the app by the end of 2013."
wallet (Score:5, Insightful)
At present, only 12 merchants are using the system
Which makes the "leave wallet at home" statement pure hyperbole.
Re:wallet (Score:4, Funny)
It'll be interesting how this works out. Normally when I'm in Richmond, I'm off my face and can't find my wallet
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Normally when I'm in Richmond, I'm off my face and can't find my wallet
Richmond Upon Thames is where Paypal and eBay's UK head office are.
Mod AC redundant, I think they're confused. Dupple is clearly the UK president of PayPal and eBay :)
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VISA & co haven't even gotten the stupid contactless stuff everywhere yet - how on earth does PayPal expect to break in?
fuck paypal (Score:5, Insightful)
They close accounts without providing reasons nor being able to get in contact with a human
this is not "news for nerds" this is a "this marketing message has been brought to you by the Paypal PR department"
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Online, sure I pay with CC or even PP at times, but for meatspace transactions, I try to do cash as much as possible.
If for nothing else, when I take out $200-$300 a week for pocket money, I have a better idea of how much I'm spending each week. It isn't abstract like CC's and online payments are....
Re:fuck paypal (Score:5, Interesting)
It's interesting because they need your profile picture on file. PayPal are getting all wet at the thought of having every customer's face in their database, to help them harass unfortunate victims of fraud. It gives them a legitimate reason to store that information, which would otherwise be illegal in most European countries.
Re:fuck paypal (Score:4, Informative)
PayPal requires a government issued photo ID for all but the most trivial uses.
In the UK (where this trial is taking place) PayPal doesn't "require a government issued photo ID" for any purpose. It's not required by UK anti-money laundering legislation. And there is no "government issued photo ID" in the UK.. And no, we don't use our driving licences for this purpose. And no, we aren't required to carry our driving licences when we're driving.
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Ditto
I was once asked for my driving license at the check out in a Californian supermarket and the girl was really upset that it did not have a photo yet she did not want to see my passport which has a photo. She called the manager who looked at me (I am an old fart) and he just told her to get on with it. Weird country.
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It gives them a legitimate reason to store [the customer's face], which would otherwise be illegal in most European countries.
It does not have to be illegal. As I understand the spirit of privacy laws that exist in EU, if (1) there is a legitimate reason, (2) user is made ware, and (3) you do not retain it after you do not need it anymore (the customer ceased to use the service), then it should be fine.
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This is an interesting idea from the wrong company.
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I was about to reply with a post about "...but here in the EU (unlike the US IIRC), PayPal *is* classified as a bank and therefore has to comply with much stricter legistlation than they appear to have to do in the US".
But in looking for a citation I found these:
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?391236-Paypal-freezing-closing-accounts [consumerac...roup.co.uk]
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?235225-Paypal-claim-and-the-small-claims-court [consumerac...roup.co.uk]...
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthrea [moneysavingexpert.com]
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They are, however, BBB accredited and have an excellent rating:
http://www.bbb.org/sanjose/business-reviews/payment-processing-service/paypal-in-san-jose-ca-210387 [bbb.org]
Compare that to, say, Steam's mother Valve:
https://www.bbb.org/western-washington/business-reviews/computer-software-publishers-and-developers/valve-corporation-in-bellevue-wa-27030704 [bbb.org]
which gets a straight F for pretty much the same reasons you claim for PayPal. I'm not a friend of PayPal and would move elsewhere if that were a serious option, but
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your BattleMaster is one of such recipients, I'd prefer to not use PayPal for payments
I offer direct bank transfers as an alternative, I just don't advertise it much because it is a ton more work for me and, quite frankly, people donating two or three Euros per bank transfer cost me more money in time and effort than I get.
I would love for the banking industry to set up a PayPal-like system where you can transfer money to my bank account world-wide at low fees and I can plug in a backend to process your transfer in whatever way I need to. I would use it immediately.
People who were ripped off -- it's their own fault?
Didn't say that. If you go
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But at least they aren't subject to banking regulation! That has to count for something, right?
Missing info (Score:4, Informative)
The customer's name and photo then appears on the shop's payment system and the retailer charges them by clicking on their image.
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So my twin brother can take all my money now?
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Sounds like free lunch on you're twin's dime.
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I'm surprised identity fraudsters don't create fake identical twins more often.
Extraneous middle man taking cut. (Score:5, Insightful)
So paypal get their % cut and then the card company get their % cut. No thanks, this makes goods more expensive.
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The summary is about Paypal being used at high street retailers, so cash and debit/credit cards are suitable.
why is paypal legal ? (Score:2)
Other "banks" require government licenses and are heavily regulated. And I consider paypal a bank because it has control over the funds it keeps for its users, just like a bank.
Re:why is paypal legal ? (Score:5, Insightful)
I agree. If it waddles like a bank and quacks like a bank then it's a bank.
Unless it's a building society. Assuming they still exist...
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Nationwide in the UK is a huge Building Society. Actually I think it is or was the worlds biggest.
There are like 40-50+ of them in the UK last I checked Wikipedia. Yeah 45 now. 2008 killed a few. Damn 2008.
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Paypal is goverment regulated and is indeed a considered a bank by European goverments.
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They are registered as an "electronic money issuer" in Luxembourg. A registration in one EU country is valid in all EU countries. It is not quite the same as a bank, the main difference is that there is no deposit insurance in the event that they go bust, however, unlike real banks, they are required to keep customers' money in a separate ring-fenced account.
Re:why is paypal legal ? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Time to set my profile picture to a penis (Score:5, Funny)
That would only be good for microtransactions
profile pictures can be perfectly faked (Score:2)
http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/videos/walter-white-interviews-bryan-cranston-on-fallon-20130803 [rollingstone.com]
just sayin'.
Square? (Score:1)
Basis for projected growth? (Score:2)
Well no kidding. Of course they expect it to grow rapidly, they're the ones selling it! Do they have any real evidence to suggest that this will actually happen? Of course not.