Forget fumbling for your UPI PIN at the checkout counter. Amazon Pay has launched a feature that lets customers approve transactions with just a fingerprint scan or face unlock, marking a significant shift in how Indians will make digital payments.
Amazon Pay has introduced UPI Biometric Authentication, allowing users to complete transactions up to Rs. 5,000 without entering a PIN. This feature announced by the National Payments Corporation of India a few months ago, and Amazon Pay becomes one of the first to integrate into its system.
Now, whether splitting a restaurant bill with friends, paying at a neighborhood store, or checking account balances, customers can now authenticate payments using the same biometric security they use to unlock their phones.
Amazon Pay ditches UPI PIN: Why this matters
The move addresses a persistent pain point in India's booming digital payments ecosystem. The need to remember and manually enter PINs for every transaction.
Early adoption numbers suggest customers are embracing the change. Over 90 percent of Amazon Pay users are choosing biometric authentication for eligible peer-to-peer UPI transactions, according to the company. Amazon says that the feature makes payments approximately twice as fast as traditional PIN entry.
Is biometric authentication more safe?
Beyond convenience, biometric authentication offers enhanced security. Unlike PINs that can be observed, shared, or forgotten, fingerprints and face scans are tied directly to the user's device and cannot be replicated or stolen in the same way.
Biometric data remains stored locally on the user's device and is not transmitted during transactions. The authentication process uses the device's secure enclave technology, the same system that protects banking apps and sensitive data on modern smartphones.
"Our goal has always been to make digital payments convenient and secure," said Girish Krishnan, Director of Payments at Amazon India. "With UPI Biometric Authentication, we're removing one more layer of friction from everyday payments."
How to use biometric authentication on Amazon Pay
The feature is currently available for Android users and works across multiple payment scenarios:
- Open the Amazon app and navigate to Amazon Pay.
- Access UPI settings within the payments section.
- Enable biometric authentication when prompted.
- Ensure your device's fingerprint or face recognition is already configured.
- Initiate a transaction through Send Money, Scan & Pay, or merchant payment flows.
- When the authentication prompt appears, use your fingerprint or face scan instead of entering your PIN.
- The transaction completes instantly upon successful biometric verification.
The Rs. 5,000 transaction limit aligns with regulatory guidelines while covering the vast majority of everyday payments, from grocery shopping to utility bills and peer-to-peer transfers. For transactions exceeding Rs. 5,000, users will still need to enter their UPI PIN, maintaining an additional security layer for larger payments.
