Amazon has filed a patent that will enable consumers to pay for goods via selfie. Customers will need to prove they're three-dimensional and not a photo, through movements such as blinking and smiling.

The patent describes the system as biometric facial recognition software which confirms that the human in the picture is eligible to make a transaction.

Instead of having to type in a code, users can simply hold out their phone and snap a photograph of themselves.

It is understood that Amazon hopes the system could replace passwords.

In place of obstacles such as CAPTCHA numbers and letter codes which are generally in place to filter out robots,  the system would ask the customer to perform an action "that cannot be replicated with a two-dimensional image".

The patent attributes that the process would also be "fun for some users". It was filed on 10 March but it is unknown when the process would be put into place.

Last month MasterCard also revealed a feature that will allow card holders pay with either a picture of their face or a fingerprint.