Page 38 - Security Today, August 2017

The Potential of Biometrics Understand its uses for banking customers and employees
By Bill Spence
Many financial institutions are looking to biometrics to enhance customer trust and convenience, and for securing the bank enter- prise and facilities. Proper implementation is critical. Geography and culture matter, there is no silver bullet, and there are mul- tiple modalities available, from face to vein. When implementing biometrics solutions there are a number of issues to consider, choices to make, and implementation direc- tions to take, each with their own implica- tions for fulfilling the promise of biometrics authentication.
Security and Trust
One of the biggest challenges facing banks is how to provide secure and trusted services while substantially improving customer ex- perience. We are reminded in headline after headline that fraud is an ever-present and increasing threat, but the value of consumer trust is no less important. Paramount to es- tablishing complete trust in transactions is a focus on the customer experience, and bank customers are demanding a seamless and consistently satisfying experience across all
service channels. Employees also want a bet- ter user experience while their employers de- mand security. These twin goals of security and convenience must be achieved without increasing cost or complicating the compli- ance process.
Biometrics solutions meet these needs, en- abling banks to cultivate customer loyalty and boost acquisition. They can also be used to im- prove the employee experience and efficiency.
Plus, biometric solutions can offer the simultaneous benefit of supporting mul- tiple strong authentication methods. For instance, in the consumer space, as EMV enhanced the security of the card, so bio- metrics can enhance the security of the PIN—while creating a much more conve- nient experience for the bank customer (see Fig. 1). Other mix-and-match authentica-
tion options include card and biometric, phone and biometric, and “deviceless” so- lutions that combine an account number and biometric. Biometrics solutions also enhance productivity through faster trans- actions and the elimination of passwords.
When biometrics is used for customer authentication it improves convenience while reducing fraud. Solutions can be used across multiple channels, from online and mobile banking to transactions at the ATM, the tell- er, a call center and a safe deposit box. Key questions to ask include where the authenti- cation will take place – at the teller and, if so, is the implementation fixed or mobile? When using biometric sensors on mobile applica- tions, it is important to know that there are major variations in liveness detection—if it even exists today on the phone.
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