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To stop a face scan from approving payments, first determine where the biometric is processed. If the payment app is merely calling your phone’s Face ID or face-unlock feature, turn off biometric approval in that app; the app normally never receives the face data. If the provider enrolled your face for its own matching service, you must disable that service and request deletion of the provider-held template. Deleting the phone’s face enrollment is a separate step.
The safest sequence is: disable biometric payment approval, test a PIN or other permitted fallback, delete the device enrollment if you no longer want face unlock, and send a written deletion request for any remote template or source image. Keep the provider’s response, deadline and legal-retention explanation.
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First identify which kind of facial payment you use
“Facial payment” is used for two technically different arrangements. The distinction determines what you can delete and whom you must contact.
Device-local authentication
The payment app displays a Face ID, Touch ID or face-recognition prompt supplied by the phone’s operating system. The phone verifies the match and returns an approval result to the app; the app does not receive the underlying biometric record. Meta’s Erin Egan, its vice president and chief privacy officer, states that Facebook Pay can use device biometrics and that “Facebook will not receive or store your device’s biometric information.” Bank of China (Hong Kong) similarly says the biometric credentials used by BoC Pay+ remain on the device rather than being stored by the app.
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In this arrangement, turning off the app’s biometric switch stops facial approval for payments. Removing the phone’s Face ID or face enrollment is optional and affects other features, such as device unlocking, that use the same enrollment.
Provider-hosted facial matching
A provider-hosted service asks you to enroll a facial image and keeps a mathematical template for later matching. Disabling the phone’s Face ID cannot remove that copy because it is held in the provider’s systems. Boldswitch’s Face Pay policy, for example, describes an opt-in service that stores a facial biometric template rather than the original photograph. Stripe explains that users can withdraw consent to its use of biometric information; the service may also hold separate photographs or identity-submission documents.
Look for clues in the enrollment screen and privacy notice. A prompt that simply invokes the phone’s Face ID or Touch ID is generally local. A service that asks you to take a selfie, enroll at a terminal, or consent to facial matching is more likely to maintain a remote record. The word “template” means a mathematical representation used for comparison; it does not necessarily mean the provider keeps the original photograph, so ask about both.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware match| Question | Device-local approval | Provider-hosted facial payment |
|---|---|---|
| Where does matching occur? | On the phone or its secure biometric hardware. | On the provider’s systems using an enrolled template. |
| What stops payment prompts? | Turn off Face ID, facial recognition or biometric approval in the payment app. | Disable the provider’s facial-payment feature in its security or privacy controls. |
| Does deleting the phone enrollment remove the provider’s data? | There is normally no provider copy of the device biometric. | No. A separate provider deletion or consent-withdrawal request is required. |
| What remains after disabling? | Ordinary transaction records and any device enrollment you leave active. | Transaction records, and possibly data retained under a stated legal exception. |
Turn off facial approval in the payment app
Menu names differ by service and country, but the control is usually under Security, PIN & Biometrics, Payment Settings, or Sign in and security. Disabling approval changes how the app authorizes future access or payments; it does not automatically close the account, remove a card, or erase transaction records.
- Open the payment app’s settings. Look for Security, PIN & Biometrics, Payment Settings, Sign in and security, or a similarly named area.
- Switch off the biometric control. The label may read Face ID, Facial recognition, Biometric approval, Face unlock, or Face Pay. Confirm any warning that says future payments will require a PIN or another method.
- Complete a normal sign-in or small payment check. Use the permitted PIN, passcode or other non-biometric method. This confirms that the setting changed rather than merely hiding one prompt.
- Record what you changed. Note the date, app version if shown, and the exact setting. This helps support staff distinguish an app-level change from a device-level enrollment.
Some applications separate biometric sign-in from payment authorization. Turn off every relevant toggle if your goal is to prevent a face match during a purchase. If you only disable sign-in biometrics, a payment screen may still be allowed to invoke Face ID. Conversely, a payment-only switch may leave biometric sign-in active.
Documented paths for common services
| Service | Documented path or instruction | Fallback or deletion detail |
|---|---|---|
| ShopeePay | Settings → PIN & Biometrics, then toggle the biometric feature off. | Use a PIN when the app requests authentication. The help guidance does not state that this action deletes a phone enrollment. |
| BoC Pay+ | Menu → Settings → Payment Settings → Face ID/Touch ID. | The bank says device biometric credentials are not stored in the app; they remain on the device. |
| Virgin Money | Profile → Sign in and security. | Virgin Money says the biometrics used by its app are stored on the device. |
| Facebook Pay | Use the payment or security setting that controls device biometric approval; the policy description does not publish a single universal menu path. | Meta says it does not receive or store the device biometric information, although it still collects ordinary payment and transaction details. |
If you cannot find a matching label, search the app’s help center for “biometric,” “Face ID,” “facial recognition,” or “PIN.” Do not assume that disabling a phone-wide Face ID prompt has changed the payment app’s own setting; verify with a PIN transaction or sign-in. If an update changes the menu, use the current in-app help or contact support through the authenticated account.
Delete the face enrollment stored on your phone
Disabling payment approval and deleting the device enrollment are separate actions. Delete the enrollment only if you also want to stop face unlock or every other feature that uses that face profile. If you want to keep face unlock for ordinary phone use, leave the enrollment in place and disable only the payment-app toggle.
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- Open the phone’s Settings.
- Enter the area named Face ID, Biometrics, Face recognition, or a similar label.
- Authenticate with the device passcode, pattern or PIN.
- Choose Delete facial data, Remove face, Reset face data, or the model’s equivalent command, then confirm.
- Recheck the payment app’s security page. If it still shows biometric approval enabled, turn that switch off again and test the non-biometric method.
Huawei’s support instructions specifically distinguish disabling facial-data features from deleting facial data: disabling a feature does not erase the enrollment, while the separate Delete facial data command does. Labels and menu placement vary by operating-system version and handset model, so follow the wording displayed on your device.
Deleting local enrollment can affect device unlocking and any other applications that rely on the same operating-system biometric. It does not, by itself, send a deletion command to a bank, wallet, merchant or identity provider. If the phone is shared, sold or returned, remove the enrollment only after confirming that you have another way to unlock the device and access the payment account.
Delete a facial template held by the provider
A remote template requires an action at the service, not just on the phone. Use the service’s privacy or security controls first, then make a written request if the policy does not clearly confirm deletion.
Boldswitch Face Pay
Boldswitch documents the path Settings → Security → Face Pay and says, “You may disable Face Pay at any time from inside the application (Settings → Security → Face Pay).” Its policy states that the stored biometric template is deleted within 30 days after Face Pay is disabled, except where the law requires longer retention. The 30-day period is the policy’s stated maximum, not a general industry standard.
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After disabling the feature, save a screenshot or confirmation and calendar the 30-day date. Count from the date the service records the feature as disabled, not necessarily the date you first remove a phone setting. If the template is still present after that date, ask support to identify the legal exception, the data covered by it and the expected end date.
Stripe biometric information
Stripe says a user may withdraw consent to its use of biometric information by contacting [email protected]. The policy discussion distinguishes biometric information from non-biometric identity-submission data. If your goal is complete removal, explicitly request deletion of the facial template, source photographs and identity documents, not only withdrawal of biometric consent. The policy does not state a universal deletion deadline, so ask Stripe to provide the applicable schedule and any legal-retention exception in writing.
Withdrawing consent and deleting data are related but different requests. State both: stop future collection or matching, and delete the existing biometric information. Ask whether any copy is held by a processor or identity-verification partner and whether the provider will relay the request to that party.
A request you can send
Use a precise request that identifies the account and separates the data types:
Please disable facial payment on my account, delete my facial biometric template and any source facial images, stop future facial matching, and confirm the deletion date. Please also identify any payment, identity or fraud records retained under a legal exception, the legal basis for retaining them, and the expected end date.
Keep the ticket number, sent date, identity-verification steps and the provider’s written response. If the provider asks for additional verification, use its official in-app or privacy channel rather than sending identity documents to an unverified address. Do not include more personal information than the provider needs to locate the account, but provide the account identifier it requests so the request is not treated as anonymous.
What disabling and deletion do not erase
Biometric deletion does not necessarily delete the underlying payment relationship. A provider may need to retain a payment history, card token, billing record, contact details, shipping information or a fraud-investigation record. Meta says its payment services continue to collect ordinary transaction details such as payment method, transaction date, billing, shipping and contact details even though Meta does not store the device biometric.
Boldswitch’s 30-day template rule also contains a legal-retention exception. A provider may therefore confirm that the biometric template was deleted while explaining that a separate transaction or compliance record remains. Ask the provider to state which category remains; “account deleted” is not the same as “every record deleted.” A retained card token or transaction record can support refunds, accounting, fraud review or other legal obligations without implying that the facial template is still used for matching.
Check that facial approval is really disabled
- Payment test: Start a permitted low-value or ordinary transaction and confirm that the app requests a PIN or another non-biometric method.
- Sign-in test: Sign out and back in, if practical, to verify that biometric approval is not silently re-enabled.
- Device test: If you deleted the phone enrollment, confirm that the Face ID or face-recognition settings show no enrolled face.
- Provider test: For a hosted service, obtain written confirmation that matching is disabled and note the promised deletion date.
- Record test: Review the provider’s response for data categories retained for legal, payment, security or fraud purposes.
If the face prompt still appears
- Reopen the payment app’s Security, PIN & Biometrics, Payment Settings, or Sign in and security page.
- Turn off every facial or biometric toggle, not only a general sign-in option; some apps separate sign-in from payment authorization.
- Close and reopen the app, then perform the PIN test.
- If the prompt persists, contact the app’s support team and state that you want payment authorization restricted to a PIN or another non-biometric method. Ask whether a separate Face Pay enrollment exists on the provider’s account.
Do not repeatedly delete and recreate the phone’s face profile as a substitute for changing the app setting. That can alter device access while leaving a provider-hosted enrollment untouched. Ask support whether the prompt is generated by the operating system or by the provider’s own camera and matching flow.
Use these five questions to compare any facial-payment service
Policies often use “biometric” broadly. Before enrolling or when requesting deletion, obtain a clear answer to each question:
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- Where does matching occur? Is the phone only returning an approval result, or does the provider receive and retain a template?
- Does disabling approval delete enrollment? Some settings stop authorization but leave a hosted enrollment active; others require a separate deletion command.
- What is the deletion deadline? Request a number of days, the starting event and any legal exception. Boldswitch states 30 days after disabling Face Pay, subject to law; no broader industry deadline is established here.
- What is the fallback? Confirm that a PIN, passcode or another non-biometric method is available before switching the feature off.
- Is a privacy request required? If the provider holds its own template, use its privacy channel and request confirmation in writing.
Also ask whether the service stores an original selfie, liveness-check video, identity document or only a derived template. Request the retention period for each category, because deleting a template may not delete identity-submission material. Confirm whether disabling applies to every device and account session or only the handset on which you changed the setting.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Privacy and jurisdiction caveats
Exact menu labels, identity-verification requirements and retention periods depend on the named service, device model, operating-system version and jurisdiction. A provider may have different rules for payment authentication, identity verification and fraud prevention. Treat a policy’s stated period as service-specific; there is no single industry deletion period established for all facial-payment systems.
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If a provider cannot give a clear answer, ask it to identify the exact policy section governing your account and the jurisdiction that controls the request. Keep copies of notices, screenshots and correspondence. Those records show when you disabled the feature and what deletion or retention explanation you received.
A practical order of operations
- Classify the system: determine whether the phone is doing the match or the provider is.
- Disable payment approval: switch off Face ID, facial recognition or Face Pay in the app.
- Test the fallback: complete a sign-in or ordinary payment with a PIN or another permitted method.
- Delete local enrollment if wanted: remove the phone’s face profile only when you also want to stop face unlock elsewhere.
- Request remote deletion: use the provider’s security control and privacy channel for any hosted template or source image.
- Track the response: record the ticket, deadline, retained categories and any legal exception.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I turn off Face ID for payments?
Open the payment app’s Security, PIN & Biometrics, Payment Settings, or Sign in and security area. Turn off Face ID, facial recognition, or biometric approval, then confirm a payment or sign-in using the app’s PIN or another permitted method.
Does turning off Face ID delete my face data?
Not necessarily. Turning off an app toggle stops biometric approval. To remove the phone’s enrollment, use Settings and the device’s Delete facial data, Remove face, or Reset face data command. A provider-hosted template requires a separate provider request.
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Yes. Leave the phone’s face enrollment active and disable only the payment app’s biometric-approval setting. Test with a PIN to confirm that payment authorization no longer invokes Face ID.
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How do I delete a facial template held by a payment provider?
Disable the provider’s facial-payment feature, then use its privacy channel to request deletion of the biometric template and any source images. Ask for written confirmation, the deletion date, and the categories retained under any legal exception.
How long does Boldswitch take to delete Face Pay data?
Boldswitch states that it deletes the stored biometric template within 30 days after Face Pay is disabled, unless law requires longer retention. Keep the confirmation and follow up after the 30-day period if necessary.
Does Meta receive my Face ID biometric information for Facebook Pay?
Meta’s Erin Egan says Facebook will not receive or store the device’s biometric information. Meta can still collect ordinary payment details such as payment method, transaction date, billing, shipping and contact information.
What if the face prompt remains after I disable it?
Check every biometric toggle because sign-in and payment authorization may be separate. Close and reopen the app, test the PIN, and ask support whether a separate provider-hosted Face Pay enrollment is active.
Will deleting biometric data delete my payment history?
No. Payment history, card tokens, billing records, contact details, shipping information, or fraud records may remain. Ask the provider to identify each retained category and the reason and expected end date for retention.
The Bottom Line
First determine whether facial matching is local to your phone or hosted by the provider. Disable biometric payment approval in the app, verify a PIN fallback, delete the phone enrollment separately if desired, and submit a written deletion request for any remote template or source image. Record the provider’s deadline and legal-retention exceptions; disabling a face prompt does not automatically erase payment or compliance records.
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