NFC gains traction among end users

The use of near field communications-enabled smartphones as access control credentials is a major topic among security professionals. For those not familiar with the technology, NFC provides simplified transactions, data exchange and wireless connections between two devices that are in close proximity to each other, usually by no more than a few inches. Many smartphones currently on the market already contain embedded NFC chips that can send encrypted data a short distance to a reader. NFC technology is being added to a growing number of mobile handsets to ultimately enable mobile payments as well as many other applications.