The process of hand-washing clothes has been replaced by washing machines. Handwritten letters have been replaced by electronic mails and messaging via the internet. Paperback books are now competing with digital copies sold for tablets and computers. This a continuing pattern in the modern era in which humans are continuously developing newer and better technology to improve human life, which ends up inevitably replacing older processes and technology. The same is now being done to how we pay for our services and goods through the revolutionary new development of Uniqul. Why bring your wallet with all your cash and credit cards when you only need your face?
Uniqul is the world's first face recognition payment system aimed to make the shopping experience more enjoyable and faster. It uses sophisticated programming that processes your facial structure and biometrical data to access your account in the company database. From there, it will be able to extract to necessary information and money to pay for whatever services and goods that you want to purchase as you approach the cashier. To finalize the purchase, all you need to do is to press the "OK" button on the Uniqul tablet. Overall, the transaction would be completed in less than 5 seconds. To keep the system secure and safe, Uniqul also uses complex, military grade algorithms. At the moment, Uniqul is preparing to be implemented in the City of Helsinki in Finland. Hopefully, it will soon be able to be used throughout the world.
This innovative technology is really pushing us into the future that we could have only imagined of in the past. However, while this technology does make life simpler, such as when you are in a rush and direly need to make a purchase as fast as possible, does it make life better? Privacy has been a rising issue with the rise of technology. The government or any person with the ability to control and manipulate technology, are able to access our private information and monitor our actions. With Uniqul, a visual recognition system is able to track our faces to access and record data about our lives. At its infantile stages of real world application, it does not seem much of a threat so far, but that may change in the future. Development and improvements may potentially make Uniqul a tool to compromise our privacy. Then again, this is only a possibility. Even though technology can help us achieve great things, we must be constantly conscious of the fact that technology is a double-edged blade that can be wielded against us.