NEW REPORT: Is Security Holding Omnichannel Banking Back?

Consumers expect to do business with their bank online seamlessly, without the hassle of complicated security checks, whether through their mobile phone, smart watch, home speaker or other connected device.

However, offering this convenience can create new opportunities for fraudsters to slip through, thanks to the growing number of security breaches and the troves of consumer data easily available on the dark web. So how can banks offer customers both a secure and simplified experience while offering their services online?

In the inaugural issue of the Omni Security And Authentication Report, PYMNTS explores how banks are using technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and neural networks to identify and build customer profiles and safeguard themselves and their customers against the rising threat of fraud.

Around The Security And Authentication Space

In the wake of high-profile breaches, a growing share of financial institutions (FIs) and other players are investing in new solutions and tools to authenticate and validate consumers’ identities.

FinTech security solution provider Deposit Solutions, for one, recently wrapped up a funding round worth $100 million, the second largest round ever received by a German FinTech player. The company’s solutions work to connect “more than 70 banks from 16 countries” to data on more than 30 million consumers.

Elsewhere in the space, Equifax, which suffered a high-profile data breach last year, is turning to a new partner so as to not fall victim again.

The company recently announced a strategic alliance with digital consent management and open banking platform provider consents.online. The pair plans to develop data-sharing solutions for the U.K.’s Open Banking initiative, enabling consumers and small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to provide organizations with consent to access financial data and build customer profiles.

Even social media giants are looking to use bank data to offer new and improved services.

Facebook recently asked banks to share consumer information like checking account balances and card transactions. The company reportedly plans to use the data to develop features allowing users to receive fraud alerts and view account balances.

This news comes amid concerns surrounding personal data usage on the social networking site, particularly following allegations that market research firm Cambridge Analytica improperly collected personal data from its users to sway the U.S. presidential election. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg appeared before Congress to testify about the alleged misuse of data as a result.

For more on these stories and other news from around the space, check out the Report’s News and Trends section.

Deep Dive: Using Data To Build Customer Profiles

With the advent and popularization of mobile and connected banking channels, banks can now tap into customer data to better understand their customers’ habits and preferences.

In the Omni Security And Authentication Report Deep Dive, PYMNTS explores how companies from around the space are using this data to build customer profiles, which can be used to authenticate and validate identities and transactions in real time.

RBC Takes An Intelligence-Driven Approach To Security

As more banking business is done online, those in charge of safeguarding consumers and companies need a smarter approach when fighting fraud, according to Martin Wildberger, executive vice president of innovation and technology at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC).

In a recent interview with PYMNTS, Wildberger offered an inside look at how the company is using AI, machine learning, neural networks and other innovations to fight fraud and protect customers — no matter what channel they’re banking on.

“RBC is aiming to push the boundaries of the science around machine learning,” Wildberger said. “We are researching and developing ways to address cybersecurity, fraud management and biometric authentication using AI. In fact, we’re continuing to innovate to enhance our capabilities and keep pace with the fast-changing threat landscape.”

To read the full story, download the Omni Security and Authentication Report.

About the Report

The  Omni Security and Authentication Report, powered by CA Technologies, is the go-to-source for the latest authentication and security developments, data, news and trends.