Biometric Technology – the Future of eCommerce Strategy
The following is a guest post submitted to M2SYS by Paul Simmons.
Ecommerce has successfully penetrated into the daily routine of the common man for getting them access to reliable and cost effective products in comparison to those available in the local markets. The ease and comfort of online shopping has facilitated people to get products at home, whereas merchants have also explored these channels to endorse their products to revenue maximization.
Despite the benefits, the eCommerce industry has brought several insecurities to the table regarding the personal and confidential information of customers. The buyers are interested in placing orders online, but the fear of fraud often prevents them from doing so.
Traditional security methods like remembering a username, password, and a secret question are now outdated because hackers can easily break them and get access to user accounts. In such cases, the systems do not recognize the true identity of a user and allow anyone to sign in to an account whoever has a password.
For preventing identity misuse, biometric technology is proposed to be implemented on eCommerce websites because a biometric identification system uses physical and behavioral characteristics of an individual to grant account access. For example, it includes the use of fingerprints, iris patterns, facial recognition, voice, and palm vein patterns to match it with a database to verify a user’s identity.
Significance of Biometric Technology in E-commerce
Every online business wants to strengthen their platform to provide a safe shopping experience to the end consumer, that’s why they have altered or defined new strategies with the passage of time. The ability to pay from the comfort of your home through credit cards or any other payment gateways has made the eCommerce world more vulnerable to fraud and identity theft. Hackers gather personal and financial information of consumers, breaking passwords, getting illegal access to accounts and forging identities which discourage people from paying for goods and services online.
To lower the risks associated with an online store, biometric technology has replaced conventional identity verification in favor of behavioral and physiological attributes. The most commonly used biometric is fingerprinting that needs the installation of a fingerprint reader and a database to capture and record the biometrics of users. The system reads fingerprints of a user and grants access only if it matches with the records, or else access is denied. This strengthens security checks of people frequently logging in to your web site and offers a secure alternate.
Implementing biometrics for a strategic move
Customer security and comfort is the ultimate priority of an online store which is why every merchant has to define effective strategies according to technological changes. The implementation of biometrics on your eCommerce website is also among the strategic moves that are performed to lead the market. The addition of a fingerprint reader in iPhone 6S, 5S and other branded cell phones has set new identity verification standards for online buyers.
Online store owners who have made their website mobile friendly to facilitate the majority of online users can easily turn users into loyal customers by allowing them to sign up for an account through fingerprints and get rid of entering passwords and personal details again and again. It will facilitate them to quickly select products, proceed to checkout, and confirm identity by tapping their finger and nothing else.
The use of biometrics with mobile commerce will further maximize the revenue of online stores as it sets customers free from remembering complicated passwords and ensures that their financial details are kept confidential.
How does Biometric Technology Work in Ecommerce?
The effectiveness of biometric technology has compelled experts to adopt it for online shops so users from different localities and regions can enjoy shopping without worrying about fraud. A merchant can add biometrics by following these steps:
Selecting a type of biometric
Select a behavioral or physical aspect of a user to set as identity verification. It can be fingerprints, iris, palm veins, face, voice, or a signature that is unique to each individual. By nature, we have a distinct body and personality, and no one can forge it exactly the same.
Enrollment and verification system
The selection of a biometric shall be based on consumer ease of entering the details. For example, if you set fingerprint scanning as the primary identity check, you will need to take a record of every customer registered with you. After a biometric enrollment template is created, users can be authenticated by scanning the fingerprints again and testing the system.
Retrieving fingerprints
Fingerprints are stored in binary code (no images are ever stored) on a server with the eCommerce web site and then retrieved in the matching process when a customer tries to access their account. Mobile users can easily tap the screen and get access to their accounts rather than configuring their social accounts or remembering complicated passwords that are made unbreakable with special characters and capital letters.
How does a Merchant Benefit from biometric technology?
Multi-regional online stores are exposed to more threats than a local one and they need reliable authentication for user identity. They can replace traditional ID verification with any available biometric advancements. It strengthens the security of an online store.
Store managers often receive queries when a user forgets a username or a password, and they have to set up a system to allow them easily reset their credentials. Biometrics saves merchants time by removing a single chance of getting such kind of queries.
Customers are more attracted towards a mobile friendly eCommerce website, and implementing biometric technology simplifies singing in or shopping through your store. You can achieve a competitive advantage by allowing customers to sign up with their biometrics without any hindrance.
Concluding Thoughts
Biometric technology is in practice in many fields since its inception, whereas eCommerce web sites have recently implemented it for improvement of security and identity verification. Furthermore, the technology is supported by the addition of fingerprint scanning on mobile devices, making it easier for website owners to implement biometrics. To provide a safe shopping experience to your valued consumers in the near future, you will have to add the implementation of such a technology in any future strategy.
Author Bio: Paul Simmons is a CMS Extensions Developer with 7 years of experience in PHP development at FMEaddons – an eCommerce development company with Top tier extensions and themes for popular shopping cart platforms like Magento, Opencart, Woocommerce, & Joomla.
