2016, The rise of Cardless cash

Payment services introduced by Apple Pay and Android Pay have spurred people into paying for items using digital wallet technology.  Microsoft also has been planning to join the foray of the wallet concept with its re-launch of Windows Wallet in Windows 10 to bring Windows phones up to par with Apple Pay formally known as Passbook.

Tap and Go credit cards have now been around for a number of years and the success of such contactless technology has lead the mobile industry to develop subscriber identification module (SIM) cards housing chips similar to those used in credit and debit cards, giving mobile phones  the ability make payments over contactless terminals.  Mobile phones with mobile wallet apps now have the ability to make cash payments over contactless terminals without the need for bank cards or credit cards and Semble, a mobile payment service is gaining traction particularly in New Zealand where 2degress, Spark and Vodafone with banking partners ASB and BNZ along with Paymark’s payment network are offering integrated mobile wallets to New Zealanders. 

Card-less cash technology such as mobile wallets will reduce the number of cards currently required to be carried around in a physical wallet with the tie in of loyalty programs such as FlyBuys and those offered by major airlines with mobile wallets.  Visa payWave’s contactless payment technology  may have paved the way for more things than just contactless payment in 2016, as 2016 maybe the year card-less cash and loyalty programs.
 

 

UAV Posing a security risk - Quadcopters at risk over privacy and safety concerns?

With a new generation of small, affordable quadcopters, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), finding their way into consumer retail, and used for everything from hobby flying and sports broadcasting to agriculture and search and rescue. And as they take to the skies in our cities and countryside they are throwing up fresh challenges to lawmakers and privacy advocates alike.

Sky TV grounded its camera drone until the Cricket World Cup following an incident involving a "toy" drone in Dunedin, and a crackdown by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has resulted in three operators being fined over safety concerns – one involving a near miss with an aircraft in Taupo.

Transport Minister Simon Bridges signs off the Civil Aviation Authority's proposed new rule, New Zealand is set to be the first country to allow drones off the line-of-sight leash.

Civil Aviation Rule Part 102 - Unmanned Aircraft Operator Certification will also come into force on August 1 and will enable people who want to operate outside the existing rules for unmanned aircraft to do so if they have in place a plan to manage the safety risks.

An incident in February, in which a parent used a drone to photograph a Featherston primary school swimming event, suggests the potential for privacy breaches.

From August 2015, operators in New Zealand wanting to fly drones over private property will first need to get the consent of the property owner. The CAA says the new rule does not specifically consider privacy but was created to aid safety. Nevertheless, the authority is working with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner to promote relevant privacy law.