How many online purchases will be abandoned this Black Friday because of password frustration?

Earlier this year, iProov published data showing that the average American abandons an online purchase 16 times a year because they can’t remember their password. It’s not much better in the UK; the average Brit abandons 15 purchases a year.

Think of all the frustrated customers trying to remember their passwords. Think of the millions of dollars of lost sales. Think of all the marketing budget invested in getting a customer to the point where they’re ready to pay…and then an unnecessarily clunky log-in process that hasn’t changed much in 20 years sends them away. 

How does biometric authentication reduce abandoned purchases?

Biometric authentication provides two things that passwords cannot offer: security and usability. Passwords can be stolen or guessed. Your real face cannot be stolen. Liveness detection enables customers to complete a face scan lasting a few seconds, which confirms that they are the right person (replacing the need for a password) and that they are a real person. 

This means that customers get a simple, convenient, hassle-free way to log into a website within seconds, which prevents abandoned purchases. Retailers, on the other hand, can increase their security against fraud.

Consider the difference between passwords and Liveness Assurance from iProov:

Using passwords:

• Imagine you are using a password to log in and buy a jumper as a gift for a loved one
• The website says ‘Sign In! Or choose ‘New Customer!’
• You immediately start a conversation in your head: Have I used this website before? If I click New Customer and put my email address in it could throw an error that it’s already in use? What to do? I’ll risk it and choose ‘Sign In’.
• Type in my email address.
• What’s my password? The password that I was using a lot this time last year was…it could be one of three. I’ll try one of them and see how I get on.
• ‘Email address or password not recognized.’ Now what? Have I used the wrong email address? Or the wrong password? Do I try the same email with the other two password options? Or do I try another email with the same password? I’ll just click Forgot Password.
• ‘Please provide your email address and if we recognize it we’ll email you.’ OK. Type in email address. Then go to my email account. Nothing there. Is that because it’s slow? How long should I wait? Or has it gone into spam? Or was the email address wrong?
• Amazon does jumpers. It’s not the type of jumper my mother asked for or even wears but it’s the thought that counts.

Purchase abandoned.

Using iProov Liveness Assurance:

• ‘Sign In! Or choose ‘New Customer’!’ I’m fairly sure I have an account with this website. Here’s my email address. Now a quick face scan lasting 3 seconds. It let me in! Great!

Purchase complete.

It’s time to bring authentication into the 21st century. Let’s aim for a Black Friday without the password frustration and abandoned purchases in 2021. Read more about passwordless authentication from iProov.