Mobile transactions involve exchanging financial information over cell phone networks. They range from web-based sales to SMS text message payments and apps that turn phones into barcode readers or credit card scanners. Mobile security is crucial to protect personal information and banking hotspots.
Mobile transactions are exchanges of information, primarily related to finances, that occur over cell phone networks. The most basic mobile transactions involve web-based sales, that is, consumers browsing to websites on their phones to make online purchases. The most complicated transactions involve SMS text message payments, apps that turn phones into barcode readers or credit card scanners, and phones that are capable of transmitting payment information to vendors with little more than a tap. Any interaction between a cell phone and a larger mainframe that results in any transfer of money can be considered a mobile transaction.
Today’s cell phones are capable of much more than simply making and receiving calls. The basis of mobile transactions is the ability to transmit, store and receive specific information. Most aspects of mobile transactions relate to the ability of phones to access the Internet, as the vast majority of transactions involve real-time data transfer over broadband wireless connections.
Website-based mobile transactions are the easiest. When users visit shopping websites on their phones, they can generally make purchases in the same way as on a computer. Websites that are optimized for mobile users often have payment shortcuts and apps that will store billing and credit card information, so customers don’t have to re-enter it each time they visit.
Companies have built on this basic model to develop a host of options for mobile payment transactions. Many banks offer mobile banking apps, for example. These applications allow customers to download certain account information to their phones and then use the phone’s features to check balances, transfer money, and make payments. Similarly, some vendors have created programs that allow cell phone owners to order and pay for products with their phones, and then pick them up in person, either with a credit card payment or SMS payment. This can allow the mobile-minded customer to skip the line for things like a morning latte, pizza to go, or tickets to a show or movie.
All of these mobile transactions involve the use of cell phones as a conduit. In some mobile transaction technologies, the phones themselves make the purchases. This usually involves storing certain data in the phone’s integral memory that will allow you to interact directly with providers. This is often known as “hopping” a phone.
In direct phone purchase situations, chip phones need only come into close contact with a cash register or other payment computer to complete a transaction. A customer at a grocery store with this type of technology only needs to bang their cell phone against the cashier’s barcode scanner to pay for their items, for example. Sometimes a password or PIN number is required to complete the transaction, but not always.
Other mobile business transactions also exist. Regular use of cell phones and other mobile devices such as credit card readers is one example. The technology that allows cell phones to interact with other real-world applications—starting cars, unlocking buildings, turning electrical appliances on and off—is another. Businesses and marketers are constantly looking for new ways to reach a mobile-savvy clientele.
However, the more capable phones are, the more important mobile security becomes. Credit card details, personal information and banking hotspots must be able to be protected if a phone is lost or stolen. Data sent from cell phones must also be protected from scratching or other interception. Secure mobile transactions provide the confidence the industry needs to continue to develop.
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