Tag: uk mobile payments

Consumers continue to worry about the security issues associated with mobile commerce

Mobile commerce is growing in popularity, but this does not mean that new payment platforms are perfect. Over the past few years, consumers interested in mobile payments have expressed concern regarding security issues. Primarily, consumers are worried that their financial information is at risk of being exploited if they make use of a mobile payment service. This has been true in the past, as malicious groups have targeted such services and have gained access to sensitive information.

Some cash through Paym is going to the wrong accounts

NatWest, the United Kingdom’s largest retail and commercial bank, admits that mobile payments are not perfect. The bank’s own service, called Paym, is included in this, with the bank noting that, at times, money could be put into the wrong account due to a glitch. Before consumers can use Paym to make a purchase, they must funnel money into their accounts that are linked to the service. The glitch caused this money to be sent to accounts that were not linked to the service, much to the surprise of the owner of that bank account. NatWest is now working on fixing this problem in order to ensure that money goes where it is meant to.

Paym has become very popular among consumers

Paym launched in April of 2014 and more than $150 million in payments have been sent through the service since that time. Approximately 40 million people use the service, making it one of the most popular services of its kind in the United Kingdom. Paym does not only work with NatWest accounts, of course, and those with accounts with Barclays, Lloyds Bank, and several other organizations can use the service.

Glitch highlights security concerns that exist in the mobile commerce space

The glitch suffered by Paym highlights ongoing concerns regarding the mobile commerce sector. Because new payment systems are electronic and, in many cases, automated, they are susceptible to faults in software. Glitches can lead to a major financial impact for consumers and businesses alike, which could result in liability issues for organizations responsible for these payment systems.

The bank from the United Kingdom let it slip that the mobile payments service will be available in March.

U.K. bank, Barclays, has accidentally let it slip that Apple Pay is not just headed to its customers but that it is known exactly when it will be arriving and, according to the large financial institution, that will be in March.

The bank been the only major financial institution in the U.K. that hasn’t supported Apple’s mobile payments.

Customers at Barclays were the only ones with accounts at a large bank in the country that didn’t have the NFC technology based mobile payments from Apple Pay available to them. The service first became available last year in July, but the bank chose not to support those contactless payments for its iPhone carrying customers. However, the bank has now inadvertently provided confirmation that it will be arriving in March.

It was the CEO who accidentally let the release date of Apple Pay slip, when replying to an impatient customer’s email.

Ashok Vaswani, the CEO of Barclays, replied to an impatient customer’s email on January 12, giving confirmation that it would become possible to use an iPhone to complete mobile payments transactions within “60 to 75 days” of that time. That slip was all it took to provide a solid idea of when Apple’s mobile wallet would become available to customers of the bank as that is the only wallet app that is supported by the iPhone.

If Vaswani’s range of dates is accurate, it will mean that the iPhone’s mobile wallet will become available to Barclays customers at some point between March 13 and March 28. Still, despite the slip, the bank has yet to actually issue an official confirmation of the dates.

This will have Barclays joining Lloyds, Halifax, and every other large bank in the United Kingdom in offering Apple Pay to iPhone using customers. The reason for the delay in supporting the mobile wallet has not been offered by the bank. That said, it has been implied that there has been a disagreement between Apple and the bank with regards to the terms of supporting the service.