Mobile payment: "The Cloud" on life safer

This article author Plachans-Ranganathan prashanth Ranganathan is PayPal mobile security and risk control director, who served as Truvie company http://www.aliyun.com/zixun/aggregation/32086.html "> CEO. Truvie is one of the earliest developers of real-time fraud detection software, which was acquired by PayPal in 2011.

Recently, with the attention of mobile wallet and digital wallet, the security of financial information on mobile devices has become a hot topic. In fact, if used properly, mobile payment schemes can make financial information on your credit card more secure.

The first is to clarify some misconceptions: "Mobile wallet" and "digital wallet" are two completely different concepts. "Mobile wallet" refers to the use of mobile phone to pay, bank accounts and credit card number and other financial related information are stored on the mobile device, users need the phone to complete the transaction. For example, using near-field communication technology (NFC) embedded on a mobile phone, users can pay by simply waving their phone over a special terminal in a Retail site. The "digital wallet" is different. Digital wallets exist in the cloud and are not fixed on any particular device, such as mobile phones, but people can access and use the wallet in a variety of devices, such as physical cards, cell phone numbers, PIN codes, or mobile devices in NFC End-to-end mode. Sensitive financial information is stored in the cloud, not on physical devices.

I'm a staunch supporter of digital wallets with cloud solutions, and then let me tell you why.

The biggest problem with the mobile wallet is obvious. Aside from the challenges it faces, such as the acceptance and adoption of consumers, and the high cost of technology upgrades for retailers, the payment scheme itself poses unnecessary risks to consumers. Imagine that if you store important financial information permanently on your phone, the user will undoubtedly be in endless trouble if the phone is lost or stolen-all information may suddenly be stolen. Relying entirely on physical devices to handle such sensitive information will put users at great risk, and this risk is completely avoidable.

The "digital wallet" payment scheme relies on the inherent security of the cloud world. This is a way of not having to store financial information on the phone. No matter what device you use, users can access the "wallet" anytime, anywhere, even if the replacement of other devices or mobile phone upgrades are also no need to worry, even if the phone is lost or stolen, financial information is also safe. Of course, we always recommend that users use PIN code as the first line of defense for mobile phone security. Storing all sensitive financial information securely in the cloud, rather than in the device, is intuitively smarter. While the risk of financial disclosure is greatly reduced, consumers still enjoy all the functionality and flexibility of mobile payments.

Look at the problem from another perspective: if your phone is stolen and all financial information is stored on the phone, it is impossible for the system to tell whether you are actually trading when the thief uses his mobile phone. With the cloud solution, your account will be monitored in real time. For example, if you've just finished a deal with a desktop computer in San Francisco, and your account has made a deal in Paris after 10 minutes, then the system will immediately find out.

As the use of mobile phones and mobile devices continues to surge, the way consumers pay will undoubtedly grow, even beyond our imagination. When this happens, financial information security will become more important, and must always keep pace with the rapid development of technology. In my opinion, the "digital wallet" in the cloud can guarantee the necessary security and flexibility, allowing users to pay without the help of a specific mobile device.

(Responsible editor: The good of the Legacy)