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Keith McCord Reporting Zions Bank has just launched a hi-tech check cashing program that no other bank in the nation is doing. Instead of having to show your ID to cash a check, all you need is a fingerprint.
Zions Bank has just launched a pilot project at 12 branches in Utah and Idaho. When customers come in to cash payroll or government checks, their ID's will be confirmed through "Biometric" technology--that is, from your fingerprint.
James Boden, "Pay by Touch" Reg. Sales Mgr.: "What the biometric is doing is reading individual data points on your fingerprint. Because of the security involved, we capture the image of the fingerprint and store it in a file."
It takes only a few minutes to enroll in the system. First your drivers license or legal ID is scanned in, employment is verified and your photo is taken. Then both index fingers are scanned.
Stephen Richards, Zions Bank: "After that [the first set up] you're good to go forever. You don't even have to bring in your ID after that."
Just come in, place your finger on the reader and all your ID info will be displayed on the teller's computer screen in seconds.
Rob Brough, Senior VP, Zions Bank: "The possibilities are really endless. But for now, we're looking at it as a check cashing system. Could it be used for other types of identification, ATM's, etc? Absolutely."
Zion's Bank is the first major financial institution to use biometrics for personal identification purposes. Across the country, there are about 2,000 grocery and convenience stores using it, with 3-million individuals in the system.
Rob Brough: "We'll take a look at it in the next six months and see how it works. And based on the success of the program, we'll look to expand it beyond the initial 12."
The other benefit of this system is that if someone has tried to cash a fraudulent check at another participating bank, the teller will immediately know.
