Amazon One Elevates Palm Reading With Privacy-Centric Biometric Authentication And Payment System
Amazon is currently training a bunch of psychics, who will then license their talents to businesses across the US to read people's palms to determine their future, specifically to see if they pose a security threat. Just kidding! There will be no psychic readings, but the retail giant is rolling out Amazon One, which is basically a palm reader. Palm as in your hand, and not the defunct PDA maker, by the way.
In case you are wondering, no, Amazon's palm reader will not tell you if you are going to be lucky in love and fortune, or anything of the sort. Rather, Amazon One is a biometric security solution, enabling a "fast, convenient, contactless way for people to use their palm to make everyday activities like paying at store" an effortless endeavor. And there are use cases beyond retail shopping.
Amazon envisions its palm reader being used for things like presenting a loyalty card (rather than punching in your phone number on a keypad or swiping a card when you shop), entering a place like a stadium, or authenticating yourself when you enter and clock into the workplace, where something like that might be applicable.
The palm reading party is underway at two cashier-less Amazon Go stores in Seattle, including its original location at 7th and Blanchard, and its store in South Lake Union at 300 Boren Ave North. According to Amazon, it takes less than a minute to sign up at those stores to use Amazon One. The process is simple—it involves inserting your credit card, then hovering your palm over the reader and following the prompts so it can build a palm signature. Users are able to enroll one or both palms.
Why palm recognition, though?
"One reason was that palm recognition is considered more private than some biometric alternatives because you can’t determine a person’s identity by looking at an image of their palm. It also requires someone to make an intentional gesture by holding their palm over the device to use. And it’s contactless, which we think customers will appreciate, especially in current times," Amazon explains.
Indeed, this has been a trying year with COVID-19. Social distancing, hand sanitizer, and masks are commonplace in an attempt to slow the spread of the Coronavirus while researchers continue to work on a vaccine.
Amazon ensures that its palm reading platform is "highly secure" with multiple security protocols in place. In addition, palm images are not stored on the individual readers, but get encrypted and whisked off to a "highly secure area" that Amazon custom-built in the cloud, where the palm signatures are actually created.
What do you think about palm recognition, is this something you would be willing to use? Let us know in the comments section below.
