Why CurrentC is not all bad

[AustinIllini]

Nope. Some folks don't talk on their phone in the checkout line.

No one talks on their phone anymore, but if there's a three person line at the HEB in the 20 items or more line, I'm going to have my phone out checking twitter, email, facebook, etc. I don't even have to pull out my wallet at any point.

Way to try to look "cool" but actually look silly.

 

[kcirtap00]

I doubt that most people have the same amount of difficulty getting their phones (big or small) out of their pockets as you do. For most, getting even a big phone out of their pocket would be as easy and probably easier than a money clip, and most would be carrying their cards in a wallet anyway, which most certainly would be more difficult to get out of a pocket than a phone.



No proof but I think you would be in a very tiny minority there. I suspect most people owning smartphones would not leave the house without their phones. Sort of defeats the purpose of having a mobile phone.

I wouldn't leave without my phone. I would panic every time I felt my pocket and didn't feel my phone in it.

 

[AustinIllini]

All of this, of course, is ignoring the fact that Apple Pay is significantly more secure than your wallet.

 

[deeddawg]

No one talks on their phone anymore, but if there's a three person line at the HEB in the 20 items or more line, I'm going to have my phone out checking twitter, email, facebook, etc.

Two points:
Perhaps things are different in TX, but usually "on your phone" refers to talking and "using your phone" refers to all the other stuff you mention. I see plenty of people chattering away on the phones, so your first claim fails right away.

Second, the smiley denotes a bit of humor. Try not to take stuff quite so personally.

 

[AustinIllini]

Two points:
Perhaps things are different in TX, but usually "on your phone" refers to talking and "using your phone" refers to all the other stuff you mention. I see plenty of people chattering away on the phones, so your first claim fails right away.

You corrected my diction to match your dialect, but that negates my point? Someone checking their email while waiting in line at a grocery store is not being rude.

Second, the smiley denotes a bit of humor. Try not to take stuff quite so personally.

But you're so wrong it hurts. (did I use that right?)

 

[GoCubsGo]

All the original post and subsequent link to the Tech Crunch article has done for me is further my belief that CurrentC is all bad. That directly conflicts with the thread title and most of what was written disputes the claim that it is not all bad. It is all bad. I certainly don't need any company collecting data on me and analyzing it to the point where they make some kind of recommendation to me. I'd be sent directions to the nearest AA meeting, Jenny Craig, and probably a church, if that were the case.

It is quite simply ridiculous to me to use a system that is so intrusive. It is no skin off my back to swipe my card and I will continue to swipe my card. Cash is more of an issue because I don't carry it most of the time. Not using ApplePay is also something I don't care about. I need to drive places so I have my wallet. I would not leave it in the car so it would be on my person at all times. There is no reason why I would have to exert additional effort to pull out my wallet in lieu of my phone. Both reside in a pocket and both take the same effort to retrieve.

 

[MasonDoc]

Anyone who thinks getting a credit card out is easier just isn't thinking. You're already waiting in line at a vendor, so you're probably on your phone. Oh look! Your phone is already out and ready to pay, which, by the way, requires a wave and a tap of touch ID.

My apologies I misread your post.

 

[deeddawg]

Someone checking their email while waiting in line at a grocery store is not being rude.

I'm not sure why you're still acting upset. I referred to talking on the phone in the checkout line. You clarified that you're not talking but are instead quietly checking emails etc. Thus my comment about people talking in the checkout line (and to the point of ignoring the cashier) doesn't apply to you since you never talk on your phone.


Also I'm curious about one other thing. Presumably you have 20+ items in your cart if you're standing three deep in the 20+ checkout line else you'd go to self checkout or an express lane. What do you do with the phone in your hand when it's time to unload your cart onto the belt at HEB? Do you put it away and take it out again when the person ahead of you is halfway through checkout? Or does HEB have such long conveyer belts that three 20+ item cartfuls fit on the belt?

 

[farmkittie]

taking a big phone out of my pocket (I own a Note 2) is infinitely more inconvenient than my money clip with 3 cards. Sometimes I don't even carry my phone out with me when I'm running quick errands.

Ok, I get it. For me, I like to just wave my phone by the reader with my thumb or finger on the fingerprint scanner because I can leave my wallet at home. I just put my license, car reg, and proof of insurance in a pocket on my phone case. It's tight so they don't fall out. I usually put a credit card and some minimal money in there too. To each his own.

 

[farmkittie]

I'm not sure why you're still acting upset. I referred to talking on the phone in the checkout line. You clarified that you're not talking but are instead quietly checking emails etc. Thus my comment about people talking in the checkout line (and to the point of ignoring the cashier) doesn't apply to you since you never talk on your phone.


Also I'm curious about one other thing. Presumably you have 20+ items in your cart if you're standing three deep in the 20+ checkout line else you'd go to self checkout or an express lane. What do you do with the phone in your hand when it's time to unload your cart onto the belt at HEB? Do you put it away and take it out again when the person ahead of you is halfway through checkout? Or does HEB have such long conveyer belts that three 20+ item cartfuls fit on the belt?

Same thing as I do if I'm carrying my wallet and phone: Put them at the bottom of the cart and put the groceries on the belt. Retrieve wallet and phone in time to pay cashier. I'm at the foot of the cart by me so the cart is between me and anyone who could take them. I'm not shopping in a bad neighborhood but still. If I left them in the part that folds down where the handle is, I'd have to ask the person in line behind me to hand them to me

 

[ibis99]

My reasoning why CurrentC will fail.

1) The QR Code.

2) Your critical information is out there, in a cloud, just waiting to be plucked.

And finally- it's not Apple. And that's not just fanboy talk, that's history.

 

[farmkittie]

Nope. Some folks don't talk on their phone in the checkout line.

Image

Wow, I'm put off by their demanding signs even though I wouldn't do what they're telling me not to do.

 

[AllieNeko]

Let's say that merchant fees raise prices to the consumer by 2% (they don't - the true cost to merchants is less than the fees). In exchange for that, I get:

90 days free breakage insurance and return protection
1 year extended warranty
EXCELLENT foreign transaction rates
An intermediary if a merchant scams me who is on my side
Airline miles or cash back that is worth nearly this much or even more, on its own

No, I don't care about the 2% or so merchant fee, even if they pass it straight on in their prices. The benefits are well worth that amount.

 

[Shabbis]

I don't even write checks or use my debit card for this reason, especially after I became a victim of identity theft. I'll stick with Apple pay or credit cards.

Exactly. This is why I use a credit card that has given me amazing fraud protection and customer service. I never give out my bank account information or use my debit card.

I just hope ATMs also adopt NFC, much more secure for withdrawing cash than the old card swipe.

 

[farmkittie]

Like many, I am excited by Apple Pay and the potential to disrupt payment services with customer security in mind. I am also peeved that companies like CVS who are backing CurrentC are now disabling NFC payments.

But what is CurrentC really about?

Techcrunch has the best article I've found so far on really understanding the motivation behind CurrentC: http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/25/currentc/. It is worth reading to understand what is at play here.

Essentially, there are two areas that need disruption:
- security for customers (Apple Pay)
- credit card fees for merchants (CurrentC)

Why should you care about the latter? Briefly, merchants have to pay fees + percentage of sale on each transaction. Say, 2% plus $0.35. If you use an "affinity" (miles/rebate) card, the merchant gets charged even more on the transaction, and the credit card company makes even more out of the deal, kicking some of it back to the consumer to lure the consumer to make more money for the credit card system.

This increases cost to merchants and end prices to customers, while pros include fraud protection, extended warranties, and other consumer benefits perceived to the individual (but weigh against consumers in the aggregate).

CurrentC is essentially an effort to break to merchants' dependence on this system, but may be deemed a success on their end if they can just gain leverage on the credit card companies to reduce the costs. In the end, this potentially is good for the consumer, too, but the pessimist side of me feels that the merchant would keep the profit with no benefit to the consumer!

CurrentC is horribly flawed, especially from the consumer side, but the really unfortunate thing is that neither CurrentC nor Apple Pay is a solution to BOTH problems and in being separate cause them to conflict with each other.

We either need them to join up or we need someone to step in with a disruptive solution to both issues. Or we will just have to wait until CurrentC fails!

----------

CurrentCis also about merchants being able to mine customer data. However, there are merchant solutions for that that do not conflict with Apple Pay and therefore is left out of original post.

Plus credit cards allow one to have up to 30 days to pay interest free. And sometimes longer depending on card and merchant offers. I think many people appreciate this feature. With CurrentC the money would be out of your bank account the same day. This is a less important downside than the inferior security, hassle, and data mining but it's a consideration.

Mining your health data, well that's the scariest thing of all. Bad enough that so many people in health care see your data, including business people and information technology workers, in addition to the health care providers that one would expect could be looking at it. At least they have to have HIPAA training and sign documents saying they'll be terminated if they disclose the data.

What about all the people inside and outside the U.S. who would see your data with CurrentC? Say you have some chronic condition that would make an employer think twice about hiring you and they could look you up in some datastore on the web that they'd pay some greedy vendor to access. Like all the lowlifes who set up access to a person's misdemeanors, even if a traffic violation(e.g. expired plate), unless you pay them a ransom to take the information down. If you disclose it on your employment application you would still get hired in most cases. If an employer sees if before you fill out the application, much lower chance you'd be hired.

I interviewed a great candidate for an assistant director position (networking and storage) who was a perfect fit and a great candidate. in this case, he omitted a misdemeanor for possession of pot he had years ago (when he was pretty young) on his application. The application is completed after a tentative offer is made. Well, it was a very sad situation because the head of HR would not hire him, though I tried to fight for him. He'd already quit his job and burned his bridges at his current employer so he was left completely without a job. If he'd disclosed it, he would've been hired because it was so long ago. This last bit isn't exactly on point but I was reminded of it by the prospect of someone not being hired if, for example, it's known that they have diabetes, asthma, or depression, to name a few.

 

[oddnendz]

I refuse to sign up for anything from a retailer that requires me to give the following information:

• Checking account #
• routing number
• Driver license number
• SSN
• some unspecified health information

I don't care what discounts, coupons and cash back said retailer will give me.

 

[Starfyre]

I refuse to sign up for anything from a retailer that requires me to give the following information:

• Checking account #
• routing number
• Driver license number
• SSN
• some unspecified health information

I don't care what discounts, coupons and cash back said retailer will give me.

This is why CurrentC will fail, or if it is able to exist, many won't use it if they know Apple pay.

 

[ucfgrad93]

I refuse to sign up for anything from a retailer that requires me to give the following information:

• Checking account #
• routing number
• Driver license number
• SSN
• some unspecified health information

I don't care what discounts, coupons and cash back said retailer will give me.

Agreed, there is no way I'd ever turn over that information to a retailer.

 

[MasonDoc]

Agreed, there is no way I'd ever turn over that information to a retailer.

Look folks I think we all agree that anyone that would turn that info over to a retailer is asking for the chance to become a victim. Only a fool would do so. We all know this Frankenstein creation of MCX is going to blow up spectacularly in some retailers face. The first time it's breached there would be one huge class action lawsuit. just wait

 

[deeddawg]

Look folks I think we all agree that anyone that would turn that info over to a retailer is asking for the chance to become a victim. Only a fool would do so

Yet how many people will merrily scribble all this info down (DL/SSN/addr/birthday/etc) on a paper form and hand it to the cashier to apply for a store credit card this holiday season just to save 10% on their purchase.

Look at how much personal info people give away so freely on Facebook etc...

It'll be interesting to watch how they pitch CurrenC to consumers, what incentives they offer, and what level of adoption it gains. From what I've read it sounds cumbersome vs using a credit or debit card.

 

[MasonDoc]

Yet how many people will merrily scribble all this info down (DL/SSN/addr/birthday/etc) on a paper form and hand it to the cashier to apply for a store credit card this holiday season just to save 10% on their purchase.

Look at how much personal info people give away so freely on Facebook etc...

It'll be interesting to watch how they pitch CurrenC to consumers, what incentives they offer, and what level of adoption it gains. From what I've read it sounds cumbersome vs using a credit or debit card.[/QUOTE

Deedawg I do believe your right that very well maybe how they pitch it. But in today's day and age only a fool looking to be parted from his money would do so. Not to say there aren't fools in the world.

 

[deeddawg]

in today's day and age only a fool looking to be parted from his money would do so. Not to say there aren't fools in the world.

I completely agree. I'm just saying I'm not sure how much that'll slow it down.

No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people. -- H. L. Mencken

 

[rui no onna]

This is why CurrentC will fail, or if it is able to exist, many won't use it if they know Apple pay.

To be honest, I reckon many won't use it even if ApplePay didn't exist. It's just way too invasive for practically no benefit to the consumer.

 

[CoilTap]

I refuse to sign up for anything from a retailer that requires me to give the following information:

• Checking account #
• routing number
• Driver license number
• SSN
• some unspecified health information

I don't care what discounts, coupons and cash back said retailer will give me.

Sounds like an identity thief's wet dream.

 

[aristobrat]

Less secure while your checking account info is stored in a *secure cloud*.

Your critical information is out there, in a cloud, just waiting to be plucked.

I'm curious how many folks in this thread have had their checking account info stored in PayPal's "cloud" for years?

Or have given their checking account information to their work, to be passed on to some third-party company, for the purpose of direct-deposit paychecks.

Seems to me that if thieves want to start hacking checking accounts directly, there's already a bunch of companies that have peoples checking account numbers stored, no?

I don't agree with the MCX retailers turning off NFC on their terminals, and I think the tracking aspect of CurrentC looks to be pretty invasive, but I'm not convinced that CurrentC is as insecure as some folks post here seem to believe.

My guess is that like Target's debit REDCard (which uses ACH to deduct directly from your checking account), the account number that gets passed during a transaction with a register has absolutely nothing to do with your actual checking account number.