Systems and Methods for Performing Secure Commercial Transactions

Abstract

Systems, apparatuses, and methods are provided for performing secure commercial transactions. The commercial transactions may be, for example, pre-pay pickup transactions, direct pay transactions, and transfer transactions. An identity of a user that initiates a commercial transaction may be verified based on biometric data. The biometric data may, for example, be representative of an image of at least a portion of a face of an individual, an image of an iris of an individual, at least a portion of a fingerprint of an individual, a temperature signature of an individual, a heartbeat signature of an individual, an odor characteristic of an individual, or a voice characteristic of an individual. The application can be utilized in commercial environments, getting rid of the traditional way to do transactions providing direct interaction between the merchant and the issuer of funds as well as allow an individual to engage as a buyer or seller position within a single profile, representative of an individual or business profile within a marketplace social community.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An apparatus for performing a secure commercial transaction, the apparatus comprising:
 a user interface module that enables a user to initiate a commercial transaction, wherein the commercial transaction involves an exchange of something for value;   a biometric data receiving module that is configured to receive biometric data representative of an identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction; and   a user identity verification module that verifies an identity of the user based on a comparison of the biometric data representative of the identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction with sample data that is correlated with a particular individual.   
     
     
         2 . The apparatus as in  claim 1 , further comprising an image capture device, wherein the biometric data is representative of an image of the user that initiates the commercial transaction, and wherein the sample data is representative of at least one image that is correlated with a particular individual. 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus as in  claim 2 , wherein the identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction is verified when the comparison of the image of the user that initiates the commercial transaction with the at least one image that is correlated with a particular individual is determined to match. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus as in  claim 1 , wherein the commercial transaction is at least one of: a pre-pay pickup transaction, a direct pay transaction, or a transfer transaction. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus as in  claim 1 , wherein the biometric data is representative of at least one of: an image of at least a portion of a face of an individual, an image of an iris of an individual, at least a portion of a fingerprint of an individual, a temperature signature of an individual, a heartbeat signature of an individual, an odor characteristic of an individual, or a voice characteristic of an individual. 
     
     
         6 . A payment method for use in a commercial transaction, the method comprising:
 receiving a user initiation of a commercial transaction, wherein the commercial transaction is at least one of: a pre-pay pickup transaction, a direct pay transaction, or a transfer transaction;   receiving biometric data representative of an identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction; and   verifying an identity of the user based on a comparison of the biometric data representative of the identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction with sample data that is correlated with a particular individual.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , further comprising:
 enabling the user to order an item prior to being at a location.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 enabling a seller to access at the location the order.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein receiving biometric data includes obtaining at the location biometric information of the user that initiated the commercial transaction. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 paying the seller before the user is at the location or when the user is at the location.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 6 , further comprising:
 transferring funds by the user to a third party.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 providing biometric data representative of the third party to the user.   
     
     
         13 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a secure commercial transaction, the non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising:
 a user interface module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to initiate a commercial transaction in response to a user input;   a biometric data receiving module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to receive biometric data representative of an identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction;   a user identity verification module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to verify an identity of the user based on a comparison of the biometric data representative of the identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction with sample data that is correlated with a particular individual; and   a wireless communication module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to transmit the biometric data, correlated with the commercial transaction, from a handheld device to a remote computing device.   
     
     
         14 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , further comprising:
 a sample data receiving module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to receive sample data, wherein the sample data is representative of a plurality of images of a particular individual.   
     
     
         15 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , further comprising:
 an image capture module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to receive biometric data, wherein the biometric data is representative of an image of the user that initiates the commercial transaction, and wherein the sample data is representative of at least one image that is correlated with a particular individual.   
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 15 , wherein the identity of the user that initiates the commercial transaction is verified when the comparison of the image of the user that initiates the commercial transaction with the at least one image that is correlated with a particular individual is determined to match. 
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , further comprising:
 a pre-pay pickup transaction module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a pre-pay pickup transaction.   
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , further comprising:
 a direct pay transaction module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a direct pay transaction.   
     
     
         19 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , further comprising:
 a transfer transaction module that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a transfer transaction.   
     
     
         20 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium as in  claim 13 , wherein the biometric data is representative of at least one of: an image of at least a portion of a face of an individual, an image of an iris of an individual, at least a portion of a fingerprint of an individual, a temperature signature of an individual, a heartbeat signature of an individual, an odor characteristic of an individual, or a voice characteristic of an individual.