Palm reading ATMs to debut in Japan

A new technology literally places the security of your deposits in the palm of your hand.

Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank, a regional bank in central Japan, will become the country's first bank to adopt automated teller machines (ATMs) that will identify users by their palm prints.

The bank said it would install about 12 palm-scanning biometric ATMs in late September with more installations planned in the future.

The technology, developed by Fujitsu, Ltd, allows users to prove their identity by simply scanning their hands and entering a PIN and date of birth, the bank said.

Demand for a system that does not require a cashcard or a passbook increased after the March 2011 earthquake that savaged northeast Japan in which many people lost personal possessions and were left without the means to get their money.

The bank said it will be only the second in the world to introduce biometric-dependent ATMs, after Ziraat Bank, Turkey’s largest state bank.