Biometrics for Online Banking and Payment
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Growing popularity of Online Banking and Biometrics
The beginning has been made!
So far, there have been numerous concepts ranging from the classic PIN or password entry to mTAN and pushTAN, the latest development in this area. None of these solutions has been fully satisfactory so far; some of them have sensitive security gaps, such as the mTAN procedure, and others lack convenience, such as TAN generators, which are very secure, but the user has to carry a separate device with him, which is a sensitive limitation, especially in mobile use.
At the same time, biometrics has long offered a range of methods that combine security and convenience for online banking and payments in web stores. Biometrics replaces person-related features with person-linked features. In this way, the unique personalization of end devices becomes possible. Fingerprint, iris scan or voice analysis can use their technology to ensure that the authorized user is currently controlling the device. Other control mechanisms such as PINs and TANs thus become superfluous, and the security of the process no longer depends on the cooperation or competence of the user. The user does not have to remember anything, take anything with them, or turn anything on - all they have to do is place their finger on the scanner, hold their face up to the camera, or speak any sequence of words.
Online banking
In the banking sector, the use of these biometric authentication systems represents a step forward in the protection of user data, for example by replacing or strengthening traditional alphanumeric passwords. They also serve as a reliable, fast and convenient method of verification when using or purchasing products and services. Here are some examples:
- Fingerprint: It is undoubtedly the best known and most traditional biometric. It involves the shapes we have on our fingertips that form a unique pattern with which we can identify ourselves. Most smartphones currently have a fingerprint reader, so it can be used to perform everyday operations such as activating the cell phone for payment or accessing digital banking.In digital banking, for example, it is possible to open a bank account with a smartphone by sending a photo of yourself and your ID card with the camera to compare the two images and verify the data.
- Facial recognition: It works the same way our eyes do when identifying a particular person: by facial features. The device's camera (e.g., cell phone, computer or tablet) captures the image and creates a mathematical pattern to associate it with an identity, taking into account aspects such as the distance between the eyes, the position of the nose, the size of the forehead, etc.
- Voice recognition: This method of biometric verification works the same way as fingerprint or facial recognition. The difference is that identity verification takes into account data related to the voice, such as frequency, speed, cadence, and other characteristics. In the banking sector, there are examples of its application in telephone customer service, where people can prove their identity to access information about their products or, in the case of users who cannot visit their bank branch, to perform one-off transactions.
Security as a key factor for acceptance
Security plays a decisive role in the acceptance of biometric authentication methods among users in online banking. Here, too, the picture is positive for the new technologies: more than two-thirds of Germans (68 percent) consider authentication with biometric methods to be secure. This is a slight increase compared to 2018, when 63 percent had given this assessment.
In addition, a difference between the younger and older generations can also be observed here. A good 70 percent of those under 40 consider this technology secure, compared with around 10 percent fewer of those over 40. Users of biometric procedures would value above all the increased protection against forgery resulting from the uniqueness of biometric data and classify it as secure. In their opinion, this requirement is met above all by the use of fingerprints.
BUT! Security of the fingerprint scanner on the phone is overestimated
A surprising result emerges in the evaluation of the individual biometric procedures in relation to one another. Here, the subjective perception of the respondents deviates significantly from the empirical classification of the procedures. Although facial recognition procedures are around 20 times more secure than fingerprints, the participants rated the procedures exactly the opposite. 53 percent of respondents ranked fingerprints as the most secure biometric authentication method, while only 15 percent held this opinion for facial recognition. The reality, however, was different: The probability of two fingerprints overlapping was 1:50,000, but that of Face ID was only 1:1,000,000. Let alone when compared with an iris scan or the voice. see also: https://www.smartbiometrics.de/applicability.html
In summary, although the perception of security was tripled compared to facial recognition, the subjective assessments of the participants differed significantly from the real numbers.This is a paradox that has arisen due to the widespread use of fingerprint authentication. Banks would have to do some educational work here and further emphasize the many advantages of biometric procedures.
https://www.der-bank-blog.de/beliebtheit-online-banking-biometrie/studien/37669659/
https://www.it-finanzmagazin.de/mehr-biometrie-bitte-fuer-komfort-und-sicherheit-im-online-banking-15117/
https://www.santander.com/en/stories/biometrics-the-future-of-security-in-digital-banking
https://www.handelsblatt.com/technik/sicherheit-im-netz/fingerabdruck-statt-passwort-biometrische-verfahren-werden-beim-banking-beliebter/26093358.html
https://www.pwc.de/de/finanzdienstleistungen/biometrische-authentifizierungsverfahren-2020.html