- Google Wallet has added a new safety feature to protect your data
- Display everything in the application will require verification after three minutes
- This before did not apply to make payments
While digital portfolios have gained popularity, it has become more important than ever that their safety is certainly solid. After all, the last thing you need is that the details of your credit card or identity documents fall into bad hands.
As identified by 9TO5GOOGLE, the Google WALLET application made an adjustment intended to protect your safety. Previously, if you were trying to pay something using Google Wallet and three minutes had passed since you opened the application for the first time, you would be invited to check your identity using biometric information (such as a fingerprint or a facial scan) or enter your access code. Now, once three minutes have passed, you will need to check if you want to use the application – even visualize your home screen.
This decision protects everything that is stored in the Google Wallet application, including details of payment cards, tickets, identity documents, etc. This means that intruders will not only be prevented from paying for things if they have unauthorized access to your device – they will not be able to see anything in the application.
9TO5GOOGLE noticed the change in version 25.18 of the Google Wallet application on Google Pixel and Samsung smartphones. The point of sale has said that the functionality seems to be in test but has been seen more frequently over time.
It is not the only security change that could come to Google Wallet. According to reports on Reddit, the WEAR OS version of the application forced some users to enter a PIN code each time they make contactless payment. A Reddit user has apparently been informed by Google Support that “This is one of the security measures that Google will take to protect your transactions and your account of your account”, which could be an intentional functionality (rather than a bug) which could soon deploy other users.
Intensify security
Nowadays, digital wallet apps are used to store much more than payment cards. You can almost carry out all of your identity on your smartphone, with articles as trivial as loyalty cards and pass them with a day sitting alongside vital documents such as drivers licenses and credit cards. This means that it is more important than ever than digital portfolios keep their content safe.
The wide variety of items that applications such as Google Wallet can store means that you do not only need protection against unauthorized users who spend your harshly won money – you may not want to take a look at your identity documents. With the latest Google movement, having access to this information could become more difficult for bad players who have physical access to your device.
However, there seems to be a slight scale in that the last change requires only verification after three minutes. We conducted a brief and informal survey of Techradar writers who have Android phones, and only one indicated that Google Wallet had requested authentication when the application was opened for the first time.
Maybe Google could further improve its safety by requiring PIN or Biometric authentication when you open Google Wallet for the first time, making sure that your cards are kept safe, whether three minutes have passed or not.
