LOS ANGELES – Apple Inc. released Apple Pay as an alternative to carrying credit cards. The software comprises a mobile payment and digital wallet service that allows iPhone owners to pay for purchases using a mobile app.

Some brick-and-mortar grocery-store chains, restaurants, department stores, gasoline service stations and hotels already accept payments via the service. Apple Pay also is a payment option online, accepted by app developers including Uber, Airbnb, Starbucks, Groupon and Ticketmaster.

Now consumers also can pay for their adult entertainment using the service.

Mobius Payments offers its virtual and real-world clients the ability to accept Apple Pay. Brick and mortar merchants are provided special standalone terminals the service requires, while e-commerce transactions are processed via the Mobius Payments Gateway.

“Apple Pay eliminates the need for you to reach for your credit card when making a purchase,” Mobius Payments Chief Executive Officer Mia Hyun explained. “The customer is assigned a unique device account number for each credit card they want stored by Apple Pay. This means the credit card information is never provided to the merchant, thus increasing personal security in these days of identity theft.”

The attachment of unique identification numbers to credit card information may allay consumers’ fears about the digital nature of the app. Anyone who picks up the Apple device won’t be able to use the payment service without knowing specific digital codes.

“If you lose your iPhone or iPad, you can simply put your device in lost mode, suspend Apple Pay or wipe your device clean,” Hyun said. “As your credit card information is not stored on your device, there are no concerns [about] anyone reclaiming it from your lost or stolen device.”

For more information, visit MobiusPayments.com.