I don't know how Google Wallet works.
Apple Pay stores your credit of debit card information on your phone, presumably encrypted, and protected by the fingerprint sensor. (Edit: actually, it stores a Device Code instead of the actual card information. I don't know what a Device Code is. But anyway that will presumably make it even harder to get card information off your phone.) It is hard to get encrypted information out of an iPhone; law enforcement and the FBI often can't do it; anyway it is a heck of a lot harder than pulling the physical cards out of a stolen wallet. When you make a transaction, your card information does not go to the vendor, neither does your identity. All that leaves your phone is a one-time code that is good for that transaction only. The system works with the existing credit and debit card issuers and processors, so Visa, MasterCard, Amex, and the major banks have signed on. As have a few large retailers. Read more:
https://www.apple.com/iphone-6/apple-pay/
CurrentC, the alternative smartphone payment system being pushed by Walmart and Target, is different. It bypasses the credit and debit card issuers entirely. The app on your phone has access to your bank account and when you make a transaction, it pulls the money. I haven't read up on the details but it sounds a bit like PayPal. You can alternatively load the app with money. Some big retailers are backing this because they bypass the credit/debit card issuers (Visa, MasterCard, etc); the retailers will cover fraud themselves; supposedly they will use the savings to give discounts, but as the card fees saved are just 1-2% that sounds a bit sketchy. I think retailers also like not paying to upgrade their card readers to NFC; CurrentC doesn't use NFC, instead it generates a QR code on the phone's screen that the cashier scans. But the retailers will be upgrading their card readers anyway (see next post). Read more:
Merchant Customer Exchange Unveils its Mobile Payment Network - CurrentC
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Could somebody explain how NFC is in any way more secure than a credit card? The problem isn't the credit card, the problem is the security (or lack thereof) on the part of retailers. The virtual wallet apps simply store your credit card information, it's a different medium but the same basic system. I fail to see how it is any more secure, and it certainly makes hacking into cell phones a more tempting prospect.
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