The Sparkasse is using new technology for its ATMs. Customers can use the service in more and more branches.
Kassel ‒ If you need cash, go to an ATM at your financial institution. Also taking off in supermarkets, like Rewe and Edeka is now a convenient alternative for many. But what if the card and wallet were accidentally left on the kitchen table at home?
Contactless payment via smartphone is already possible in many places in the supermarket. But the Sparkasse has also followed suit and is offering its customers a new service. Many of the institute’s machines are already equipped with special NFC readers to recognize customers’ digital cards. And the service will continue to expand. “Almost 60 percent of Sparkasse ATMs are equipped with an NFC interface. “90 percent of savings banks have at least one NFC-enabled device,” said a spokesman for the Sparkasse Finance Group hna.de from IPPEN.MEDIA.
“In parallel with the increasing use of digital cards in smartphones and smartwatches, we are also observing that savings banks are increasingly equipping their ATMs with NFC interfaces. It can be assumed that this trend will continue,” the spokesman continued. Ultimately, of course, the savings banks decided independently how to equip their ATMs. However, if you need cash on vacation abroad, you should keep a few things in mind.
Contactless withdrawal: Withdraw cash with your smartphone in three steps
In order for customers to be able to carry out a contactless transaction in this country without any problems, they must first have their digital savings bank card in the app “Mobile payment“ (for Android smartphones) or in the Wallet app (for Apple devices).
NFC technology on the smartphone
NFC stands for Near Field Communication and describes the function of the chip, which can communicate via radio with authorized recipient devices. Not all cell phones have such chips, but numerous Android smartphones since 2012 and Apple iPhones from the sixth generation onwards have been equipped with NFC technology. Stiftung Warentest has compiled a list of all smartphones with an NFC chip. These devices can therefore be used for mobile payment or mobile payment.
Contactless payment works with Girocard, credit card and smartphone and is considered “fairly safe” according to consumer protection. If you don’t want to use the functions, you can also block them. Then the NFC chip in the cards can no longer be used at cash registers or bank terminals. However, Apple customers do not have this option. “The NFC chip cannot currently be deactivated on the iPhone,” explain consumer advocates. All other smartphone users can turn off the chip in the system settings.
This is how Sparkasse customers receive contactless money from ATMs:
- Unlock your smartphone and hold it against the ATM’s NFC interface. You can recognize a corresponding machine by the contactless reader with the NFC wave logo.
- Select “Withdraw Funds.”
- Enter your personal card PIN using the PIN pad on the ATM. The shaft with the cash then opens.
Withdraw cash with your smartphone: Payment is also possible using NFC technology
It has been possible to pay in this way in some cases since 2007; Contactless withdrawals have been possible for savings bank customers since autumn 2021. With the help of NFC technology, customers can now pay for their purchases contactlessly at the checkouts in supermarkets and discount stores using their smartphone. All they have to do is hold the phone up to the terminal and the amount is paid in no time. No annoying counting of change, no PIN entry. Nevertheless, compared to other European countries, Germans are lagging behind when it comes to electronic payments.
Advantages of contactless payment:
- Fast and convenient
- More hygienic than cash
- No PIN entry required up to 50 euros
- High security standard
- Source. Sparkasse.de “Pay without contact”
But there are also safety concerns. The Federal Office for Information Security warns: “Even if paying is very secure and accessing sensitive payment data seems almost impossible, it is theoretically possible for attackers to skim off this data. But to do this, fraudsters would have to be very close to their victim at the time of the transaction.”
Withdraw and pay money with your smartphone: contactless is becoming increasingly popular
According to the industry association BITKOM, contactless payment has now become firmly established in this country. Nine out of ten people made contactless payments at least once in the store using their smartphone, smartwatch or card (period: July to September 2022). Younger people in particular used their smartphones and smartwatches at the checkout. This year, 95 percent of respondents made contactless payments at least once in the comparison period (July to September). This trend is also supported by the fact that cash is becoming increasingly unpopular.
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Loud Consumer advice center NRW Contactless payment with a smartphone via NFC technology is comparatively safe. Still, stay loud chip.de It cannot be ruled out that criminals can steal user data. Therefore, users should exercise caution and check “in which stores they would like to pay contactless and regularly check their smartphones for malicious software,” according to the online portal’s tip. A tip that consumer advocates also recommend. And if your smartphone is actually gone, the general emergency hotline can help. It is 116 116 and can be reached 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. (sthe)