Apple will use iCloud to store Biometric data from Apple Pay; according to the iPhone maker, the move is being made to ensure a seamless process of mobile payment when using the Apple Pay service. To ensure a secure data verification system, instead of storing information on the device only, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will also store fingerprint data of users on its iCloud – Apple Inc.’s own cloud service.
This is just a plan at this stage; Apple as of yet has not started storing this data because this initiative raises a lot of questions in terms of user security and privacy. Information about the possibility of the move was revealed by a reliable website, which got hold of a recent patent bought by the tech giant with information about the coveted move. As usual the market immediately, after receiving the intel, started buzzing with speculations and predictions. The hottest debate at the moment is about the risks involved with the move that may or may not jeopardize customer’s security and safety.
The application, which Apple Inc. has filed, to acquire the necessary patent is aimed at a“finger biometric sensor data synchronization via a cloud computing device and related methods”. According to the information associated with the filing, it was also intimated by the company that such a move would have numerous applications, one of which would be to authorize financial transactions of users by checking into the data stored onto the iCloud storage service.
Apple Inc. jumped on board with the fingerprint verification technology last year when it released its iPhone 5S. The iPhone 5S had TouchID technology built into it, which allowed users to use the center button installed on the iPhone as a fingerprint sensor and reader to use their fingerprints for security purposes. Then, with the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Apple Inc. also launched the Apple Pay service, for which customers used their fingerprints to make transactions.
Now, to make it more convenient and secure for users to pay with their biometric data installed onto the device, Apple seems to have decided to store the biometric information on the iCloud service, which will be retrievable as needed.
This is in direct contradiction to initial claims the company had made when the TouchID feature was released. At that time, the emphasis was put on the fact that all information retrieved through the TouchID will only be stored in a secure compound within the central A7 chip of the iPhone, and will never be retrievable by any other app, nor will ever be stored on the iCloud or any other online service.
Apple Inc. seems to have turned on its word, and now the focus is to store the information on its supposedly secure iCloud servers. However, is the iCloud service really as secure as Apple Inc. claims it is? Only last year, the service came under fire when personal pictures of celebrities, stored on the iCloud system, were leaked online. What is the say same won’t be possible in this context? Should users trust Apple Inc. with this move, one which possibly risks their security?
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is yet to comment on this and may only do so once it decides to go ahead with the move. If anything, the company will have to gain back customer trust in the iCloud service in order to make it work.