Apple Pay moves Canada towards a cashless society
Apple is bringing mobile payment systems to the mainstream — allowing customers to pay for purchases directly from their smartphones.
Recently, five major banks have partnered with Apple Pay to bring a cashless society to Canada.
The payment process system involves a transfer of money from Apple to a financial institution to the vendor. All the customer has to do is wave their phone in front of a reader and a secure transaction takes place using encryption.
While some question how secure an Apple Pay transaction can be, technology commentator Jesse Hirsh sees the Apple tap-and-pay system as a great potential for security because of their fingerprint technology.
"Security and trust is obviously a big component when it comes to choosing to use this kind of mobile technology. And Apple has been somewhat successful in both. Earning the trust of its customers," says Hirsh.
No wallet. No cash. No fuss.
But the convenience of this future of cash-free commerce has a cost, according to experts concerned about privacy and security. First they warn, the trust factor in the system that Apple is providing, as well as the data collection that is following consumer activity.
Surveillance Studies Chair, David Murakam Wood is concerned about what this mobile payment system is taking from people using their digital wallets.
"We are giving over what was previously a public and accountable economic system to a private corporation. Which in itself raises huge questions not just about sovereignty but how accountable our money will now be to us."
Guests in this segment:
- Jesse Hirsh, technology commentator and co-founder of the Academy of the Impossible, a hacker think tank
- David Murakami Wood, Canada research chair in surveillance studies at Queen's University.
Do you dream of ditching your wallet and living cash-free? Or, do you prefer the simplicity — and anonymity — of cold hard cash?
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This segment was produced by The Current's Josh Bloch and Liz Hoath.