Europe's first biometric cash machine

Europe's first biometric ATM

Worried about people sneaking a glance at your PIN while you are withdrawing money? Then worry no longer, for Polish bank BPS has unveiled the first biometric cash machine that uses vein authentication technology from Hitachi to identify customers.

The biometric cash machine, from Wincor Nixdorf, was installed in Warsaw where BPS stated that they intended into roll out another three or model units by the end of the year. It is hoped that they'll soon catch on with over 200 being installed around the country.

"Our bank is the first in Europe to provide its clients with a new means to secure transactions to complement the secret code of their banking card," said BPS Bank vice-president Krzysztof Jagielski.

Taking on money with fingerprints

Hitachi's biometric system works by requesting customers place their fingertip onto a sensor on the cash machine. The sensor then detects veins in the fingertip as a 3D pattern, which is unique to every person. Once this model is matched to those on the person's record, money is issued.

Bank customers still have the same debit and credit card, it is only the authorisation method that has changed with the fingerprint scan being offered as an alternative to PIN.

The concept was first introduced in Japan in 2006, where it is used by banks such as Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation for cash machine access in 24 hour convenience stores, however this is the first time a biometric cash machine has been used in Europe.

Unlike Asia where biometric technology has found strong support, the idea has had less traction in Europe and the US, although American bank First United has stated that it intends to trial fingerprint technology from Hawk Systems at six machines in the New York met area.

So could this be the first step in biometric technology being used in European banking? Will it make personal and financial security more secure or is biometric security, like all security, susceptible to circumvention and abuse?

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