Comments on: French road-test cashless technology

Some 200 people in Normandy city test mobile service that can be used to pay for services and cull information.

[rcrusoe]

"There's a practical side [to NFC]

Yes, there is a practical side to this. Governments won't have to purchase additional survelliance equipment to spy on people. They'll use hardware purchased by clueless people like those in Caen.

[Dr Pangloss]

Where this is leading to

I live in France and it has long been apparent to me that the French
government has the long-term goal of making each and every
commercial transaction traceable, presumably for tax purposes or
so the banks can take a cut.
For instance, in the sixties, all salaries below a non-indexed
ceiling had to be paid into a bank account. And, just recently the
Moneo cash card came out (that had to be topped up with a credit
card).
No doubt the plan is to eventually phase out cash altogether.

[taphilo]

Death by a Thousand Payments

Sounds like a future classic:
Free for all intiially, get everyone to rely upon it, then charge - only a few cents - thereafter.

Every SMS message - 5 cents! every transaction - only 5 cents! Do it 5 to 10 times a day and wait for a threshold ammount before sending it to get real money via direct EFT withdrawl from checking account or a Credit Car.

End of year $150 to 300 they get in profit. Get 30 million people to use it (just the major US cities) and close to a billion gross profit a year for the micro payments.

Stolen phones will be worth even more - since you can buy things with it and no signature or verification required.

Gives to meaning to swipe and go!

Tom Philo
http://taphilo.blogspot.com

[tim.murray]

shortcomings of gadgets

This story just illustrates and re-inforces how mobile phones and gadgets in general are the weakest link in our security.

If the gadget was located some out of the way place under our clothes, then bluetooth technology could be used as the interface.