Apple Pay Could Get Less Convenient for Shoppers

One of the biggest features of Apple Pay is convenience. It literally takes just a couple of seconds to pay for your stuff at the store using Apple’s new digital payment platform, but one lawmaker is aiming to make Apple Pay less convenient for shoppers in order to cut down on fraudulent transactions.

A Missouri lawmaker is proposing a new law that would require shoppers to show their ID if they use Apple Pay or other digital wallet service.

The bill comes from Democratic Representative Joshua Peters, and it outlines the requirement for stores to ask to see a driver’s license or other form of ID if a shopper uses a mobile payment service at the cash register. The store would also be required to write down the ID number on the driver’s license or other identification card or else the store could be responsible for fraudulent purchases.

Of course, the bill is being proposed in a effort to cut down on fraudulent purchases when a mobile device is stolen and the thief tries to use the phone at the cash register, but even then, Apple Pay still requires the rightful owner of the iPhone to scan their fingerprint using the Touch ID fingerprint scanner, which is something that makes fraudulent purchases much more difficult to achieve.

Of course, every digital wallet payment platform has its security flaws, Apple Pay included, but requiring IDs at the cash register when using Apple Pay isn’t going to do anything and won’t help Apple Pay and other digital wallet service grow in the future.

Apple Pay allows you to store your credit card information on your iPhone and use it to buy stuff at any store that supports Apple Pay. The iPhone 6 has an NFC chip that allows you to tap the pay terminal at a store to instantly buy goods. Furthermore, doing this doesn’t give the store your credit card information, so you’re less susceptible to store hacks that steal credit card information, similar to the recent Home Depot and Target hacks.

Apple Pay also works with mobile shopping apps, allowing you to pay with a single touch of the Touch ID fingerprint sensor in shopping apps that support the feature.

Furthermore, Apple says that 220,000 store locations accept Apple Pay as a payment method, and that number will no doubt continue to grow into 2015 and beyond.

The company lists a handful of national chains that support Apple Pay, including McDonald’s, Panera Bread, Staples, Walgreens, Subway, Whole Foods, Macy’s, Bloomingdales, and the Disney Store.

As for apps that accept one-touch payment with Apple Pay, there are plenty that are already on board with it. Some notable shopping apps include Groupon, Panera Bread, OpenTable, Starbucks, Sephora, Target, and even Uber.

Apple Pay is seeing a rough start, though, as users are experiencing all sorts of problems months after the payment platform first launched. Of course, problems will ways occur with a new product, but hopefully Apple and participating banks and stores can bang out the bugs and make Apple Pay a flawless way to pay for goods.