Mastercard is rolling out fingerprint and facial recognition, dubbed selfie pay, for authenticating online payments in 12 European countries.

The credit card firm is launching its Identity Check Mobile service in the UK, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. Countries in other parts of the world will join from next year.

Mastercard previously ran trials, starting in 2015, in Netherlands, US and Canada.

The move enables online shoppers to close transactions using biometrics rather than a password, with supporters saying fewer purchases will be left unfinished at checkout because the process is more straightforward for shoppers.

With Identity Check Mobile, the shopper receives a message on their smartphone generated by a retailer’s site which they use to authorise the transaction through a fingerprint or facial recognition.

Despite all the hoopla around selfie pay, users rate fingerprint verification higher according to a Mastercard executive, speaking at the recent Mobile 360 – Privacy and Security event.

Overall, the credit card firm found users appreciate biometrics, a finding echoed by rival Visa in its own research.

Ajay Bhalla, president, enterprise risk and security, Mastercard, talked up the importance of the launch: “This is a significant milestone in the evolution of payments. Shopping in person has been revolutionised thanks to advances like contactless cards, mobile payments and wearables, and now we are making Identity Check Mobile a reality for online shopping in Europe, and soon, the world.”