NFC- the Joker in the deck of contactless cards
The Schrodinger box situation of COVID19 has left every human perplexed- touch it or touch it not? Thankfully, the already adventurous Shopping Sprees have been taken care of by our digital frontier- UPI.
However, I recently noticed a sign reading — “please use paywave”. For those of you new to this term-
- If you see a wave symbol on your card, you’re all set to start using contactless payments.
- Take out your contactless credit or debit card and hold it above the symbol. And your payment will be done with ZERO CONTACT.
- Or add your card to a mobile wallet — such as Google Pay. Hold your mobile wallet above the payment terminal (authorize the transaction with biometric authentication, if needed) and your payment will be done.
But these have a limit of Rs 2,000 for security reasons. Thankfully, recently the RBI asked the country’s payment networks — Visa, Mastercard, and NPCI for the same. Now, for purchases above Rs 2,000 will require two-factor authentication, and customers must enter a PIN to process the transaction.
Globally, 46% of respondents have swapped their top-of-wallet card for one that offers contactless. In Asia Pacific, 51% of people have made the swap. But what brings this magic to these cards?
The Magician’s Tech
Contactless payment runs on the Near Field Communication(NFC) technology. NFC enables the two devices having NFC chips embedded in them to communicate using data within a short range of 2–4 cm via radio waves. An NFC chip is made up of a small storage memory, radio chip, and an antenna. NFC chips leverage the power of an NFC reading device, such as a smartphone. Devices with passive NFC chips(like cards) don’t even require power, while those with active chips (like the reader) require little power.
Is it security that’s holding you back?
Worry not!
Demystifying the security behind NFC tags :
NFC really is fundamentally secure by virtue of its extremely short range. In order to snag your NFC signal, a hacker would need to ensure intimacy such that he’s within the range, which is not practically possible.
Well, the NFC functions on your phone only go into an active mode when you want them to. For instance, the chip will activate when you check out at a retail store using an NFC terminal. The chip isn’t even working when your phone is in standby mode.
NFC signals are extremely sensitive in terms of direction. So sensitive, that you won’t be able to transfer data if you turn your phone slightly. For a hacker to illicitly grab your signal, he’d have to somehow maneuver a hacking device’s antenna into precisely the right angle if he’s extremely lucky :P So be vigilant while making contactless payments. Keep the card in the pocket or wallet to avoid cloning when not in use.
The deck of Jokers’ and Aces’
As fancy as it may sound, I also read signs reading- “UPI accepted here” :) In a country like India, with deep penetration of mobile payments, the slice of the population relying on Cards for payments is thin. On top of the requirements of an RFID Card, Paywave is still an unnecessary Ace in the deck. This is highly in contrast with American, European, or Australian landscapes, where the use of credit cards is still overpowering.
However, amidst the COVID crisis, NFC still remains the joker as technology knows no bounds limited to one product only. NFC enabled keys can be used in businesses such as car-rental. NFC chargers are being used to charge devices wirelessly. With Zoomcar already experimenting with the same, other players can level the field soon. NFC-equipped smartphones could also replace transit passes on transit systems or boarding passes at the airport.
Smartrac and blockchain startup SUKU have together launched a digital verification solution designed to authenticate COVID-19 testing kits and personal protective equipment (PPE). The NFC-powered platform reportedly enables instant verification of authenticity and provides end-to-end supply chain transparency.
Co author: Ishika Mittal, sophomore at IIT BHU Varanasi. She loves technology based products and the implications of technology at all levels of business. A backpacker at heart, she has always been curious about problem solving with minimum resources and maximum sass.
