G-Wallet What Is It?

G-Wallet What Is It?

What is G-Wallet? We know that it is something that has just been introduced by Google. But what can Google Wallet do and is it available to all?

Currently Google Wallet is not available to all consumers because it's still in a testing mode. Their hope is that by summer it will be available to consumers. When it does become available, it's free app will only be made available on the Nexus S 4G by Google from Sprint. However, as time goes by, it's free app will become available on different units. It eventual purpose is to make you more mobile by storing credit cards, coupons, boarding passes, ID and even keys, all at your phone's fingertips.

I am sure many will say, that's great but what about security. If your phone with Google Wallet is lost or stolen you will have to contact your credit card company(s) for assistance, as you would with any credit card now.
However, Google will protect your payment credentials by storing them in a chip called "Secure Element". This chip is isolated on the Nexus S 4G (currently) main OS and hardware. As to other devices, that is still unclear.

Even Google Wallet itself will have limited access to Secure Element. It will not be able to read or write data from memory, and with the multiple levels of protection at the hardware level it will prevent snooping or tampering. The ultimate goal by Google is to be able to creat virtual versions of all plastic cards that are in existence today, even establishing APIs that issuing banks can develop.

This creation seems interesting. However, PayPal is not at all pleased by this creation and there is a lawsuit pending against Google. Why? They (PayPal) allege there may have been a breach of confidential information by two former employees. Google at this point has made no comment.

For a complete rundown on what Google is wanting Google Wallet to be capable of check out "43 Things You Should Know About Google Wallet".