Payment systems are increasingly diverse and technological. What until recently could only be done with cash or card, can now be done with a mobile phone, by hand and even with facial recognition.
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An example of this is the one that has been applied in the stations of Moscow (Russia). Since October 15 of this year, travelers can pay the rates of this means of transport with their own face through the Face Pay system.
This technology is a method of payment for facial recognition that has been applied in more than 240 Russian stations. The deputy mayor responsible for this transport, Maxim Liksutov, explained in a press release that Moscow was the first city to implement this system on such a large scale.
Likewise, Liksutov clarified that this Face Pay would be optional. In this way, the deputy mayor reassured the users of the subway, assuring that the other payment systems will not be eliminated.
” I would like to emphasize that Face Pay is just another way to pay for travel, ” Liksutov explained. The connection to the service is voluntary only if the passenger considers that this payment method is convenient for him ”.
Face Pay is optional, according to Moscow’s deputy mayor.Face Pay is optional, according to Moscow’s deputy mayor.Getty Images
All those who from now on want to use this method to move in Moscow, must link a photo, their credit or debit card and their transit card to the application of the metro in the Russian capital.
Despite being easy to register, Moscow authorities warned that the process could take several hours to complete. Therefore, they recommended that they carry out the steps in advance.
Criticisms of Face Pay
In the wake of the launch of this facial recognition payment method, privacy advocates have spoken out against its application. These activists are concerned that the country uses Face Pay to control its population.
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The founder of the digital rights and freedom of information group Roskomsvoboda, Stanislav Shakirov, told The Guardian that transparency about the operation of Face Pay is absolutely necessary.
” We are approaching authoritarian countries like China that have mastered facial technology,” says Shakirov. The Moscow metro is a government institution and all data can end up in the hands of the security services ”.
Faced with these negative criticisms, Moscow has commented that all the information that the system collects is securely encrypted and that the cameras do not read faces or personal data, but biometric information.
However, it is worth noting that Human Rights Watch said that Russia was increasingly using facial recognition technology without regulation, supervision or data protection measures.
