HOW DOES NFC WORK?
NFC (near field communication) is what enables two devices to communicate wirelessly when they’re close together. NFC is actually a subset of something called RFID (radio-frequency identification), a technology that allows us to identify things through radio waves. RFID is nothing new—it’s been used for decades for things like scanning items in grocery stores and luggage on baggage claims, and tagging cattle.
NFC, which was introduced in the early 2000s, uses a specific RFID frequency (13.56MHz, to be exact) for close-range communications. To date, one of the more common uses for NFC is identification cards to gain access to places like office buildings and private garages. But increasingly, NFC is being used to power something called “contactless” payments.
If you’ve stood in line at large retailers like Whole Foods, Walgreens, or Office Depot recently, you’ve probably already seen a contactless payment in action. Contactless payment is a transaction that requires no physical contact between a device (aka a smartphone) and a payments terminal. Meaning, people can just hold up their mobile devices to pay.