Scan your eyeballs at the checkout: Canadians split on biometric payments, poll finds

Mastercard launched a checkout iris scan biometric payment program in Poland in 2024. (Mastercard)

While biometric technology is becoming more and more common, Canadians remain deeply divided on the use of fingerprint and eyeball scanning to make payments.

That’s according to a new survey from Research Co., which found 46 per cent of respondents interested in the prospect of having their physical features scanned to make purchases.

An almost exact proportion – 45 per cent – said they would rather not see biometrics implemented in their lifetime.

Many cellphones are already equipped to scan irises or register fingerprints, and the technology is sometimes used to approve contactless transactions, but there are currently no standalone biometric devices set up at checkout aisles in Canada.

Last year, Mastercard launched a pilot project using the technology in Poland – dubbed the “first biometric checkout program” in Europe – allowing shoppers to use palm, face or eyeball scans to make payments.

“This simplifies the checkout process in store, as consumers no longer need to use a physical payment card, cash or a mobile device to pay for purchases,” reads a 2024 news release from the company.

Research Co. found younger Canadians were most likely to support these types of payments, at 54 per cent. By comparison, only 30 per cent of respondents aged 55 and up were in favour of the biometrics.

The survey was conducted online from Jan. 3 to 5 among a representative sample of 1,002 adults in Canada, with the data statistically weighted according to census figures.

The margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.