App of the Day – San Francisco edition

This is really cool. If you’re a Bay Arean commuter or a SFer, thanks to good ‘ol Silicon Valley you have a multitude of fancy ride-share options for getting in and around town. Now, there’s another app covering your transport butts.

Can you guess what it is?

Muni! It’s Muni! Muni has an app you guys!

Helped along the way by PayPal and Braintree, MuniMobile lets you securely purchase and use fares and passes on your smart phone. Just download the free app, register your debit/credit card or PayPal account, and BAM! FUTURE Muni riding!

Get it at the App store now! 

Facebook messenger to process payments?

SiliconValley have reported on some sneaky investigative work by Stanford computer science student Andrew Aude. He has discovered that Facebook messenger is now set up to process financial transactions between users.

The feature will function in a similar way to how we currently use the app to send photos with the added security of an in-app pin code. The  cards used can be added within the app or can be the card users already have on file with FaceBook ( i.e. for ads) The cards available currently are only Debit cards, it seems because they cost lower fees for transferring funds and are generally easier for customers to use.

There is no clue as of yet if Facebook will charge a fee for processing transections or if they will offer the feature for free (at least to begin with). There has been some recent backlash to the separation of the the FaceBook Mobile app and the FaceBook Messenger Mobile App that they may be seeking to rectify with a free service such as this. This will also allow them to compete in a whole new arena of peer-to-peer payments with companies such as Venmo and Square.

The guy deciding all of this is David Marcus, the new head of Messenger AND formerly the president of PayPal.We seem some kind of link there… Building up a payements processing feature within messenger could also build the acceptance as FB processing financial transactions, which could prove helpful, as Facebook is also working on a ‘Buy’ button for making eCommerce purchases straight from the News Feed.

Can you see yourself using FB to transfer funds to your Facebook friends or to process other financial transactions?

Paypal attacks!

It looks like PayPal might be feeling a little threatened by Apple’s announcement of their payment system Apple Pay, as they have gone on the offense. Last week they pulled a full-page ad in the San Francisco Chronicle making sly digs about Apple’s security.
“We the people want our money safer than our selfies,” reads the PayPal ad. “PayPal, protecting the people economy.”

Obviously they are referring to how some celebrities have had nude photos stolen from their Apple iCloud accounts. The conclusion they want people to have is: How can that security – that failed so many so drastically – possibly be safe enough for your money?

It’s a good effort, and I imagine that a lot of people will agree with what they say, even if it’s not strictly true. Paypal relies on passwords, as does apple, however the celebrity hack was not a security problem on Apple’s side, more so a combination of  pretty smart hackers, likely poorly chosen passwords and the mistake of not using the 2-step verification Apple offers as an option. Something Paypal is also vulnerable to. Apple pay will also have the advantage of the Touch ID.

Although not direct competitors – yet – Apple pay will be a system to contend with. It will launch next month at  220,000 retail locations as well as some big name chain stores such as Macy’s, Bloomingdales, Walgreens, Duane Reade, Staples, Subway, McDonalds, Wholefoods, Disney and Sephora. And, the Apple retail stores. Duh. Online stores that will use Apple Pay such as Target, Groupon, Uber and the MLB store, will allow you to make the payments within their mobile apps.

On the other hand, PayPal processes 9.3 million payments each day online and has announced that it will be available in 2 million physical in store locations soon.

If it does come down to a choice you make about who you trust with your hard earned money, make sure it’s a personal choice, not swayed by ads like this. Both companies are obviously reputable and respectable- neither want any of your personal data hacked.

Also make sure that whichever one you choose, (if you indeed have to make a choice) you remember that you are also responsible for the security of your data, and adjust your personal passwords and 2-step verification options accordingly.

Yay for competition making it easier to spend out hard earned dollars! We think.