Japan’s Cashless Society – Biometric Technology

In Japan you can buy tickets to concerts, trains, airplanes…

You can also go shopping at convenience stores with your cell phone.

In other words, Japan is quickly becoming a cashless society.

Hitach has another idea … pay simply by letting customers scan their fingers. 

"Is that you, Bill? Uh, let me have you put your finger right here, would ya?"

The 'cashless machine' uses a biometric security system ro read the fingerprints of the users.

And, I wonder, how long will it take to get a copy of everyone's fingerprint?

"Biometric technology is already used by Japanese banking giants such as Mitsubishi UFJ and Sumitomo Mitsui to identify clients as they conduct

transactions or use ATMs."

Users need only to hold their finger in front of the machine, without making contact for the machine to scan an image and match it up with customer's data.

Anything…anything…to get less cards in my wallet, please.

Hitachi will experiment with 200 of its employees beginning in September.

The new 'what's in you wallet' slogan will be changed to a pre-recorded message "please wash hands before using scanner."