Sprockets & Cogs

Ten Chicago Shell gas stations are part of a pilot program that allows gas-getters to swipe their finger to pay at the pump. While this Pay By Touch technology isn’t new, it is a first for gas stations. To be honest, I’m not sure how the technology works, but the Shell’s Chris Suess, manager of global refueling innovations (not kidding), promises it’ is effifient and secure. Hmmm, fingerprint payment. Kinda weird. Secure? Well, perhaps, for the purchase. But now your local gas station has a permanent, and arguably court-admissible, record of you. Hmmm. Wonder if fed or your local DAs could subpoena fingerprint records from Shell stations? And how long would Shell keep the records? Could they sell them? Frankly, my debit card is enough of a trail of my comings and goings, my tastes, my hangouts, etc. ; I consider myself pretty well tracked. Looks like some customers at Sunflower Market, a Chicago grocery store, might agree with me. From Yahoo!News:

About 2 percent of its customers signed up for the payment option, said the store’s manager, Debbie Britton.

“I think it scares people,” Britton said. “They’re more confused about the whole system. Some of them say, ‘Well, now the FBI can find me.’

And since they can’t find anyone on their own, it’s probably not a leap to assume they’ll lean on private enterprise to do their investigating for them.

Source: Yahoo News, Popsci.com