Square's Card Case App Lets You Pay Just By Saying Your Name

Thanks to the latest app from Square, you can now pay for things without your wallet, your credit card or even your hands.

Square, a mobile payments startup founded by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, has released a new version of its Card Case app that allows users to pay for goods at certain stores just by saying their name.

"Try it! It feels like magic," Dorsey tweeted Wednesday.

Here's how it works: the latest version of Card Case, currently available only on iOS devices, uses the geo-fencing technology in Apple's iOS 5 operating system to recognize when a user is within 100 meters of a Square retailer and, when a user is in range, automatically opend the user's Square account for that merchant, so long as the "automatic tabs" feature has been enabled for the establishment.

With her Square "tab" already open, the user can then pay for her merchandise just by giving the cashier her name.

To prevent people from mistakenly charging goods to other people's open Square accounts -- say, if there are two "John's" both using Square at the same hip coffee shop -- Square will show cashiers the photos of the Card Case users next to their full names (Hint: use a nice, clear photo of yourself on your Square profile). (See image below)

Thanks to iOS 5's geo-fencing technology, the Square tab for approve merchants will automatically open anytime a user is within 100 meters of the retailer, meaning that there many be instances when a user's account becomes activated when she goes near, but doesn't stop at, a store.

A Square spokeswoman told The Huffington Post that Square currently has 20,000 merchants using Card Case in the U.S. Check out a demo of Card Case on Square's site here.

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Comments

[gtg007w]

09:45 AM on 11/03/2011

I want to see some acknowledgement feature implemented for this. There's nothing that prevents cashier from wrongly charging someone. So if the cashier 'charges' someone, the user will have to 'acknowledge' the charge before it can go through as opposed to just the cashier clicking on someone.

Other than that, great idea.

[mumi009]

07:25 AM on 11/03/2011

Just the latest way for merchants - and thieves - to painlessly take your money.

Pay cash. it is not as easily traceable.

Merchants and marketers can't use your personal information gleened from credit and debit cards for their profit.

[Rich Phitzwell]

07:55 PM on 11/02/2011

Square is simply awesome for both the client and the business. I havent looked at mine yet but i'm sure it has plenty of security built in with this. the only concern I have is the rate, is this new feature using the swipe rate or the non swipe rate that is significantly more

[tyger]

05:36 PM on 11/02/2011

NO THANKS!

[JackHoffman]

03:10 PM on 11/02/2011

Sheer laziness.

[Chadwick Wilson]

02:42 PM on 11/02/2011

This could have some really serious issues.

If it becomes popular, what if the cashier doesn't care or isn't paying attention (as many do) and selects the wrong person if there are two people with the same name in proximity? What if you are accidentally charged because the cashier chooses the wrong person? And, I didn't see anything in this article about the security of this method.

I wouldn't use it. There is too much room for some seriously bad situations happening.

[RecreationalPilot]

02:24 PM on 11/02/2011

The Amex fob Speedpass was a better idea. You just waved it withing a foot of the reader.

Low emissions, your signal isn't being carried to multiple retailers, etc.

Man, Apple has your name, address, real-time GPS data, your image, your voiceprint, all your personal info on your phone, the messages you send, the websites you visit...

Heck, they probably have all your fingerprints from when you touch the display.

[madcityy]

02:14 PM on 11/02/2011

this sound fishy