Retailers increasingly considering biometric authentication

More than half of retailers still use passwords for point-of-sale (POS) system login, despite concerns over the sharing and misuse of those passwords, according to DigitalPersona.

The survey also revealed that of those companies considering a change to new login methods, nearly 70 percent are considering a switch to biometric authentication.

The 2011 survey of more than 1,100 participants revealed that over 90 percent of the respondents ranked fraud prevention to be one of the most important aspects when considering sign-in methods.

Furthermore, respondents cited eliminating fraudulent overrides and attendance fraud as the most important security concerns facing their business.

Fraud and theft remain dominant issues for global retailers as losses continue to mount. The Centre for Retail Research’s Global Retail Theft Barometer estimates that approximately $40.7 billion is lost due to disloyal or fraudulent employees per year.

“Despite the overwhelming indication that fraud and theft are major business concerns for POS security, it’s surprising that over half of businesses still use the least secure method of user authentication,” said Jim Fulton, vice president at DigitalPersona.

“The retail industry continues to be a victim of their own inaction – they know the use of passwords is a threat to their business, and yet will accept this situation despite the availability of cost-effective and proven alternatives. Fingerprint biometrics is a proven solution that prevents fraud and theft, is easy to use and deploy and can rapidly pay for itself.”