Senators Grill Amazon on Palm-Print Recognition Payment System Citing Privacy Concerns

Amazon.com Inc. AMZN launched a palm print recognition payment system in 2020, which Senators are now investigating in the name of privacy concerns. If sufficient evidence is found, Amazon could be prevented from using the software or be required to change it somehow.  

What Happened: On August 13th, United States Senators questioned Amazon's new biometric data payment system. Amazon's CEO, Andy Jassy, was asked to disclose Amazon's plans for the palm print technology called Amazon One. 

Amazon must provide a report to the Senate detailing their plans to keep palm-print data secure, how much data Amazon has, and if Amazon plans to palm-print data for advertising purposes.

Amazon One is an easy-to-use software, where customers can now place their hand over an Amazon One device and pay for purchases in retail stores. Currently, Amazon One is available in 50 retail stores, mainly at Amazon retail locations and Whole Foods.

The senators were concerned that this payment method is less safe for consumers than biometric software like Apple Inc.'s AAPL Face ID. Amazon One uploads consumer biometric information to the cloud instead of only leaving the data on consumer devices. 

Additionally, the Senators are concerned that Amazon has been subject to hacks and leaks of consumer data in the past. This is also bound to happen to Amazon One data eventually. 

The senators were adamant that "Data security is particularly important when it comes to immutable customer data, like palm prints."

Why It's Important: Amazon's plans for their Amazon One service are significant in their goal of entering the brick and mortar retail space. It is expected that Amazon's market share of e-commerce will increase to 40.4% in 2021, but in the first, to second quarter of 2021, Amazon brick and mortar sales rose more than 7%. 

Amazon wants to revolutionize the physical retail space in the same way they did for e-commerce by making purchases more convenient. Amazon One palm-print payments are a big step in achieving this goal. 

If the Senate imposes restrictions on Amazon One service this early in its creation, it could very likely stunt the growth of Amazon's retail market plans for quite some time.