Instead of inserting a card or scanning a smartphone to make a payment, what if you could simply touch the machine with your finger?

A prototype developed by Purdue University engineers would essentially let your body act as the link between your card or smartphone and the reader or scanner, making it possible for you to transmit information just by touching a surface.

The prototype doesn’t transfer money yet, but it’s the first technology that can send any information through the direct touch of a fingertip. While wearing the prototype as a watch, a user’s body can be used to send information such as a photo or password when touching a sensor on a laptop, the researchers show in a new study.