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In my city we have nfc and qr-code readers on the bus and people randomly checking with handhelds on the subway. The bus drivers usually don’t care tho. People usually don’t bother with the actual reader and just show them a picture of the QR Code to get on. I am sure you could hold up your Starbucks point card and they would let you in lol

We don’t have those gates at our subway stations
 
Right! Considering how much CCTV there is on the London Underground, it'd be a pretty silly sort of crime. You'd be lucky to even make it out of the station! Thieves would be better off trying to snatch the phones from the thousands of people who walk around London streets every day staring at them, oblivious of their surroundings, but even that is pretty risky.

Then, of course, there's Activation Lock, which limits the value of stolen iPhones to their parts value. Too much risk for little reward.


Based on multiple experiences related to me by people I know, as well as some research, I know it is common for dips to work in teams of three or more. The first person distracts the mark, perhaps by banging into them in passing on the side opposite the mark's wallet; simultaneously, the dip reaches into the pocket and pulls out the wallet; and finally, the wallet gets handed off to a third team member to carry it away, which can be done slowly as to avoid attention. No member of the team has to run or move in a way that would seem suspicious to anyone but the mark. Working in teams like this seems like the best approach in a constrained, monitored area such as the Underground, as runners can be picked up easily on monitors and stopped by any police in the station. Purse-snatching is more snatch and grab; it's almost impossible to do this without drawing a lot of attention, which is risky in a constrained Underground situation. I've heard of backpacks getting cut open; but this seems like a bad idea on the London Underground as well, as so many things could cause it to escalate, turning petty larceny into assault with a deadly weapon.

Pickpocketing is a low-risk, low-return crime; the idea is to do it in ways that minimize police apprehension each time, and make it up in volume. ;)
 
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Is it common for pickpockets to steal the phone right out of people's hands? That seems like a risky approach for a pickpocket. Generally, the idea is to grab something the victim is not paying attention to. If the thief tries to grab something that is being held tightly, then some fairly likely outcomes include being punched in the face, creating a commotion during the attempt that draws the attention of onlookers before the grab is completed, and likely interference by onlookers before the grab is successful. There are a lot of better opportunities that don't create such an immediate commotion.

No, which is why I said "Lines of people all taking out and re-pocketing their iPhones", but it also applies to people who keep their phone in a handbag / other bag. Pick pockets watch to see easy targets who they can bump into or otherwise distract whilst they go for the location they just saw you put your valuables. Not so hard to understand really, but it's good we all know that you'd just punch your way out of being pick pocketed ;).
 
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As a visitor to London a few weeks ago I just used my Apple Pay linked watch to use the Underground. Two clicks on the watch, hold up to the reader, and I was in. Plus there was a daily cap on fares.

Are there advantages of Express Transit for the visitor above the current system?
 
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Does this mean you need to store your phone in one of those NFC protective cases to keep people from hijacking your info?
 
Does this mean you need to store your phone in one of those NFC protective cases to keep people from hijacking your info?

Only if:
1. You've enabled Express Transit in your Apple Pay settings.
and 2. You're worried about Apple's approved transit agencies "hijacking your info".
 
Based on multiple experiences related to me by people I know, as well as some research, I know it is common for dips to work in teams of three or more. The first person distracts the mark, perhaps by banging into them in passing on the side opposite the mark's wallet;

Well, yeah. This sort of thing does happen in London. I doubt it happens much on the Tube, however, which is heavily monitored by CCTV and where people are usually pretty alert and there'd be dozens of witnesses if anyone ever tried anything.

Pubs, however, especially ones frequented by tourists, are a prime target as people are usually going to be relaxed and not always watching their bags and wallets etc as closely as they should. My ex once got her wallet stolen from her handbag at a London pub, and her debit card drawn down to the maximum daily limit from a nearby ATM before she even knew it was missing. Presumably someone had "shoulder surfed" for her PIN at the bar (this being in the days before contactless was everywhere).

Thankfully, her bank were good about it and refunded the money within days after filing a Police report.
 
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Same here. Been using the Tube a lot more recently and it is a total crapshoot whether the Oyster reader will recognise my Apple Watch or not. Don't have that issue in shops, with parking machines or even the odd trip on the semi rural bus in Surrey. As soon as the yellow Oyster reader comes into view, the Watch is useless.

So methinks it is TFL/Network Rail, not anything inherently wrong with the Apple Watch.
There’s a bit of a technique to it. You have to place your wrist at a certain angle and hold it there for a split second. After trial and era and some embarrassing queue hold ups it now works every time.
 
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I tried it this evening... didn't work. Allowed me to add my card to Express Transit, the DLR Oyster Reader 'woke' my phone from a blank screen and required me to double click. I thought that might have been the system but because I looked at my phone to read the double click message I must have unlocked/Face authenticated at the same time. Leaving the station I tried again and while the reader woke the phone, it definitely required the face ID before charging.
 
Good! Keep at it Apple, getting nearer to leaving the wallet at home.

I started leaving my wallet at home when I got my XS. I keep a note in my jeans change pocket for emergencies. It’s great.
[doublepost=1559251739][/doublepost]
Lines of people all taking out and re-pocketing ~£1000 iPhones to walk through a bustling 'pinch' point.

Yeah, I can't see a problem with that... :/

Lots of people use their phones now, robbery is not a problem now it won’t be afterwards. It will just help when people fumble with their TouchID at the barrier.
 
The only benefit to this would be the ability to load monthly and annual passes, or concessions such as a child pass or gold card on to your device rather than having to carry the physical card. Hopefully this is something TfL will eventually enable anyway.

I’m sure I read somewhere recently this is being looked into.
[doublepost=1559252372][/doublepost]
Here in Norway we are not able to keep our travel cards in the Wallet app, hope will will be able to do so soon.

We use another system and app developed by Fara https://fara.no with a picture (today’s picture) and a QR code, both are changed daily.

The system works ok, but I would prefer using the wallet app.
It is much faster to use Express Transit on my Apple Watch than using the current app and QR code.

Express Transit:
  1. Tap Apple Watch
  2. Green checkmark on reader
  3. Done

App and QR code:
  1. Get iPhone out of pocket
  2. Unlock iPhone
  3. Open app
  4. Select ticket
  5. Tap Inspection
  6. Hold the iPhone up to the reader an scan QR
  7. Green checkmark on reader
  8. Done

View attachment 839652 View attachment 839653

Wow. They didn’t plan that system very well.
[doublepost=1559252679][/doublepost]
Settings -> Wallet & Apple Pay -> (tap on a payment card) -> Express Transit

"Travel Cards / Express Transit Card" section now appears on the main Wallet & Apple Pay screen.

Weird. My Barclays credit card is available as an option, but my Barclays debit is not. My debit is set as the default Apple Pay card.
[doublepost=1559253044][/doublepost]
Impossible to do that in the UK as theirs a limit if £30 when using contactless or phones to pay :( they keep talking about increasing it but still waiting, I can’t even fill my car petrol tank up with that limit!

The limit is decided by the retailer. We accept Apple Pay to the value of hundreds of pounds. I’m actually not sure of the upper limit that we have, I just know I have rung through transactions for over £200 on multiple occasions.

https://9to5mac.com/2016/06/03/apple-pay-uk-unlimited-value-purchases/

And that’s from 2016, so petition your petrol station to sort their act out.
 
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As a visitor to London a few weeks ago I just used my Apple Pay linked watch to use the Underground. Two clicks on the watch, hold up to the reader, and I was in. Plus there was a daily cap on fares.

Are there advantages of Express Transit for the visitor above the current system?
I do this fairly often now. Can’t imagine a quicker way to do it.
 
I’m sure I read somewhere recently this is being looked into.
[doublepost=1559252372][/doublepost]

Wow. They didn’t plan that system very well.
[doublepost=1559252679][/doublepost]

Weird. My Barclays credit card is available as an option, but my Barclays debit is not. My debit is set as the default Apple Pay card.
[doublepost=1559253044][/doublepost]

The limit is decided by the retailer. We accept Apple Pay to the value of hundreds of pounds. I’m actually not sure of the upper limit that we have, I just know I have rung through transactions for over £200 on multiple occasions.

https://9to5mac.com/2016/06/03/apple-pay-uk-unlimited-value-purchases/

And that’s from 2016, so petition your petrol station to sort their act out.

Tesco stores have a cap as do BP, very confusing..
 
There’s a bit of a technique to it. You have to place your wrist at a certain angle and hold it there for a split second. After trial and era and some embarrassing queue hold ups it now works every time.
There’s a bit of a technique to it. You have to place your wrist at a certain angle and hold it there for a split second. After trial and era and some embarrassing queue hold ups it now works every time.

I’ll try again but it shouldn’t need me to contort myself when it works fine elsewhere.

Great moment at Clapham Common tube station when it failed again and I realised the oyster pad was hanging to the barrier by a piece of glue!
 
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Impossible to do that in the UK as theirs a limit if £30 when using contactless or phones to pay :(

Not generally correct these days. UK retailers who have modern, properly configured payment terminals now allow any transaction value when using Apple Pay / Google Pay.

Eg: Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, IKEA, Boots, co-op, and in fact most supermarkets and chain restaurants all support > £30 Apple Pay transactions.

The laggards who don’t, in my experience, include Tesco, TK Maxx, and Argos. As well as lots of small independent shops with older payment terminals.
[doublepost=1559279170][/doublepost]
As a visitor to London a few weeks ago I just used my Apple Pay linked watch to use the Underground. Two clicks on the watch, hold up to the reader, and I was in. Plus there was a daily cap on fares.

Are there advantages of Express Transit for the visitor above the current system?

Yes. The advantage of Express Transit is that you no longer need to bother with the two clicks. It simply works from the sleep/suspended state.
 
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Two things this doesn't solve. The first previously mentioned by several others, the second not.

1) Oyster season tickets.
These are widespread for a reason, and people also add top-up funds to them to cover journeys outside of what their season ticket covers.

2) Freedom Pass.
Millions of retired Londoners have to use these to get free travel across London.
(my mother hates having to use it instead of her phone, like everyone else can! It's effectively a form of age discrimination.)

Until both are added, this extra facility is somewhat meh for several million bus/tube users. Nice for those that can actually use it, but offers nothing to fix the underlying issues a large percentage of (often poor, disabled, or aged) regular daily users face: Oyster & Freedom Pass travel cards inside Wallet.
 
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Impossible to do that in the UK as theirs a limit if £30 when using contactless or phones to pay :( they keep talking about increasing it but still waiting, I can’t even fill my car petrol tank up with that limit!

thats utter non-sense - there is no limit in UK when using Apple Pay. Some merchants may have not upgraded their terminals but in London at least that's no an issue at all.
 
Some stores which accept Apple Pay above £30. Some of them I didn’t know about!


B822DCA5-4EF6-432E-B9AC-B943E9785D98.jpeg


74A70D20-E2CF-4371-9405-3F495D9DACAB.jpeg

B74A9687-7AA5-4D8E-841B-4E6E04CF74BD.jpeg
 
It isn't in the beta.

Yes, known issue I think. Hopefully this will be solved with the release version.
[doublepost=1559296607][/doublepost]
I tried it this evening... didn't work. Allowed me to add my card to Express Transit, the DLR Oyster Reader 'woke' my phone from a blank screen and required me to double click.
It is not implemented yet in the Oyster readers.
 
Odd. I've been using Apple Pay exclusively on TfL for years using my iPhone X (and iPhone 6 before it), and never had an issue like this. For me, it works reliably every time.

Do you pre-authenticate before approaching the ticket gate / card reader? (ie, double tap the power button to activate Apple Pay, and authenticate so that it says "Hold Near Reader"?)

I am a +1 to the issue of the readers being unreliable compared to shops etc, in my case with my watch rather than my phone. I've given up trying to use my watch for this, not least because I am traditional and wear my watch on my left wrist but mostly it was just unreliable. Even when it worked, I found it slower than using my credit card.

I know it works for many and observably so, just not for me! I am curious as to whether it is specific to Amex (people I know that successfully use Apple pay on tfl are not Amex users). Do others who find that it is unreliable connect Apple Pay to Amex?
 
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