Samsung has a new chip that promises to take payment cards with fingerprint scanners mainstream. “S3B512C” is an integrated circuit that combines all the necessary components into a single system—fingerprint sensor, Secure Element (SE), and Secure Processor—which stores and encrypts the fingerprint template data, preventing it from ever leaving the chip.
In addition, the chip is thin enough to fit inside a plastic credit card. “With the three key functions integrated in a single chip, the S3B512C can help card manufacturers reduce the number of chips required and optimize card design processes for biometric payment cards,” Samsung said in the announcement.
The news arrives as Samsung has been working with Mastercard on using biometrics to better secure payment cards. A person’s fingerprint is stronger than relying on a four-digit PIN number. The fingerprint sensor can also render a payment card useless in the event it’s stolen or lost.
Samsung didn’t say when the S3B512C will be used in real payment cards, but it claims the integrated circuit is the “industry’s first all-in-one security chip solution that reads biometric information through a fingerprint sensor.” It also performs in line with Mastercard’s specifications for biometric payment cards. So the fingerprint reader should operate like the fingerprint scanners do on a smartphone or laptop.
“The S3B512C is primarily designed for payment cards but can also be used in cards that require highly secured authentications such as student or employee identification, membership or building access,” added Kenny Han, Samsung’s VP of System LSI marketing.
The secure element on board the chip also promises to be tamper-proof. “The chip’s anti-spoofing technology prevents unauthorized users from circumventing the security system with illegitimate methods such as artificial fingerprints,” Samsung said.
