Amazon is a company powerful enough to cause major shifts in any industry in which it operates. And now Amazon seems to be making new and bigger moves when it comes to biometrics and digital ID.

At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, G+D Mobile Security and Samsung showcased a banking authentication product that relies on biometrics instead of passwords. The technology also meets the revised digital payments standards under the new European Payment Services Directive, or PSD2.

The dual interface cards, usable at existing payment terminals in the country, feature fingerprint authentication and no limits on battery life and transactions. Customers soon could be able to enroll in the program via self-service.

A new Visa concept involves putting a payment sticker on a consumer’s hand to authenticate payments and other tasks, such as those conducted on the Internet of Things. Questions remain about identity controls, but the idea represents the latest step forward for payment authentication that does not involve passwords.

Many mobile devices come with the ability to enable some sort of biometric authentication baked in – a microphone for voice, a camera for face and even a fingerprint scanner. Visa wants to start enabling consumers to use these technologies instead of passwords to start paying for things.

Two United Nations agencies are working together to make it easy for Syrian refugees to purchase groceries in Jordan. Individuals previously enrolled in the biometric program can use their iris to buy groceries at certain locations.

Almost three-quarters of Europeans want to use biometric payments in the real world and online. Europeans say that the technology will be more secure and even quicker than traditional payment methods.

Making a payment using a part of your body is no longer science fiction. These are exciting days in the world of biometrics and payments. Visa and MasterCard are both working on specifications that will impact consumers globally.

After the 2001 terrorist attacks a lot of wild claims were made about facial recognition technology. The modality might finally be living up to the hype. Microsoft has enabled it for access with Hello for Windows 10 users, MasterCard wants to use it to verify payments and other financial institutions are using it to authenticate customers on mobile devices. Still, it’s use spotting suspects in crowds and protecting airports and borders remains the brass ring for security professionals.

Research from Visa and MasterCard shows that consumers are becoming more comfortable with using biometrics to authorize payments. Both payment companies are working to bring more biometric options to the consumer.