How to Use Apple Pay

With the release of iOS 8.1, Apple Pay has arrived on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. Apple Pay, which lets your phone act as your credit and debit cards, is part of the operating system itself, made visible through the Passbook app. It works a lot like Google Wallet, using a near-field communication (NFC) chip hidden inside the phone to initiate a payment with a special receiver that you can find at some checkout counters.


The receiver looks like a teacup saucer-sized disc attached to the top of some credit card swiping machines.


Unlike Google Wallet, which uses PIN protection, Apple Pay authenticates your transaction with a fingerprint scan on the home button. In some cases with Apple Pay, you have to both scan your fingerprint and enter a PIN into the card reader (as was the case when I made a recent purchase with a PIN-protected debit card).


Before you can use Apple Pay, you'll have to set it up on your phone, and make sure you know which card is the default for purchases. You'll also need to be sure your credit card works with Apple Pay, as not all banks are supported. I'll explain below how to determine the cards that will work.


How to Set Up Apple Pay First, you'll need to make sure your iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus is running at least iOS 8.1.


Next, if you haven't set up the fingerprint scanner, go to Settings > Touch ID & Passcode, and select Add a Fingerprint.


In that same setting area, make sure Touch ID is toggled on for Apple Pay, which appears toward the top.


Open Passbook. Tap the plus sign at the top right to add a credit or debit card. Follow the prompts. You'll have to enter some basic information, such as your default billing address and phone number.


When it comes time to add credit and debit cards, I recommend using the camera option, which lets you scan the card to automatically fill in the 16 digits so you don't have to type them. You will have to type your security code, however.


As of this writing, some cards are fully supported; some require that you authenticate them by installing the bank's own app; and some aren't supported at all. For example, my Chase debit card with a Visa logo was fully supported and very simple to set up. My Capital One credit card required authentication through a secondary app. And my Discover card was not permitted because it's not supported yet.


When you scan the card to add it to Passbook, the app will tell you immediately if the card is not supported. If the card requires verification, you'll see a message to that effect when you select it.


Where You Can Use Apple Pay It's hard to know where you can use Apple Pay because there isn't a geolocation-based finder for businesses that support it in Passbook. The long and short of it is that you can use it anywhere you find a PayPass reader. That's the receiver I mentioned earlier. Once you know to look for PayPass readers, you'll probably notice more of them, but they are already available at many chain pharmacies, some major grocery stores, and fast food restaurants.


PayPass (which is run by MasterCard, but does not require a MasterCard credit card to use) has this store locator website that lets you look for businesses nearby that use its system. While there is a PayPass Locator app for Android, I haven't seen one yet for iOS, though I'm sure that will change soon enough.


How to Use Apple Pay in the Field If you have more than one payment card set up in Passbook, make sure you know which one is the default option! Go to Settings > Passbook & Apple Pay, and you'll see the list of cards that are included. Right below them you'll see Default Card. Tap there to change the default.


When you're checking out at a store with PayPass, just touch your phone to the PayPass receiver. The Passbook app will automatically start the transaction, and it will ask you to verify it by providing your fingerprint. A fingerprint on the screen will fill in with red lines as the transaction takes place.


If your card is PIN-protected, you may still need to respond to a few prompts on the card reader's screen and keypad, such as entering the PIN and confirming the transaction price.


When the transaction is complete, you're done. In a few seconds, you'll see a history of the transaction appear in Passbook and a time and date stamp next to it.


Shopping in Apps Apple Pay works in select apps, including the official Apple Store app, which is where I tried it. When you begin the checkout process, you'll see an option to pay with Apple Pay (which in the Apple Store app appears as the logo for Apple next to the word 'Pay').


When you tap that, a list of options appears, including your shipping address and method of delivery. It's a one-stop pop-up for checkout, and very convenient. The final step is simply scanning your fingerprint.


I tried to take a screenshot of this page, but iOS 8.1 wouldn't let me, which is good from a security perspective.


In addition to working in the Apple Store app, Apple Pay will work in the following apps as well: Airbnb, Chairish, Fancy, Groupon, Hotel Tonight, Houzz, Instacart, Lyft, OpenTable, Panera Bread, Spring, Staples, Target, Uber, and a few others.


Paying in iTunes (Not Apple Pay) You can also use Touch ID to pay for purchases in iTunes, but this system is separate from Apple Pay. The first time you try to make an iTunes purchase, you'll see the Touch ID option appear automatically. Follow the prompts, and you'll see that it brings you to a verification page that connects to your Apple ID payment information, not Apple Pay. It's a little confusing, but these are two separate systems at the moment.


How to Remove Cards From Apple Pay If you try out the service and decide you don't like it, or just want to remove some of your payment information, here's how to do it.


Go to Settings > Passbook & Apple Pay and select a card.


At the bottom, look for the an option to Remove Card, in red. Tap that, and confirm by tapping Remove when prompted.


Is Apple Pay Safe?Most people who have never used a mobile payment app will want to know if using Apple Pay is safe.


According to Apple, the company 'doesn't save your transaction information. With Apple Pay, your payments are private. Apple Pay doesn't store the details of your transactions so they can't be tied back to you. Your most recent purchases are kept in Passbook for your convenience, but that's as far as it goes.'


Apple adds that because you never show anyone your card, and the clerk never sees your name, your credit card digits, or any other identifying information. You may, however, still encounter a sales clerk who will ask for identification and want to compare the signature on the back of your card to that of your ID, in which case you'll have to pull out your card or talk your way out of it.


There's certainly more analysis on the security of Apple Pay that I encourage consumers to consider.


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