'Finger Vein' Scanners Hit ATMs

Leave your ATM card at home, and nevermind those "skimming" scams. Hitachi's "finger vein" technology has finally hit the Western world.

Used in Japan for years, the scanners detect the tiny veins in a person's fingertip, creating a unique identifier for each individual. The Montreal Gazette reports that a Hitachi scanner has been installed on an ATM in Poland, but the bank plans to expand to other locations soon. This is the first fingerprint-scanning ATM in Europe, a milestone that, as far as I know, has not been reached in the U.S.