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Tech Talk: The Equifax saga, mobile banking threats, biometric banking, and more!

The Equifax saga continues
Modern-day mafia
Mobile banking mayhem
Swifter cross-border payments
Emotive recognition video banking
Facial ID at ATMs
Interactive digital wallet
Digital ID system for CUs
Nextgen security solution
Spam, Scams & Breaches
Updates, Patches & Alerts
and on the lighter side...

The Equifax saga continues
Credit reporting agency Equifax took a major hit when it notified more than 145 million Americans that their personal data was stolen last year. Digging deeper into the data breach trenches, the already-battered financial firm has uncovered another 2.4 million consumers who have been impacted, reports CNET. Interim Equifax CEO Rego Barros Jr., issued a statement saying the firm continues to "take broad measures to identify, inform and protect consumers who may have been affected by this cyberattack." It may be too little, too late for those consumers, but in an effort to protect customers' data going forward, Equifax has partnered with fintech security provider Entersekt on an ID verification solution that will add an extra layer of security to the credit firm's online and mobile services. Business Insider has the details and a detailed report on ID verification in banking.

Modern-day mafia
Before modern-day crimeware existed, criminal actors like Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, and Carlo Gambino (and other notorious mafiosi) became famous – and feared – for their strong-arm tactics that leveraged fear, confusion, intimidation and helplessness to achieve their nefarious profitable objectives. Today's elusive criminal gangs who thrive on anonymity deploy those same traditional tactics in a virtual world. Firms, both within and outside the financial industry, need to band together and take a vigilante approach to the fight against cybercrime, reports IDG Connect. During a video interview at a recent Bank Customer Experience Summit, an executive from Key Bank shared their bank's defensive strategy to mitigate cyber threats. ATM Marketplace has the details and the video interview.

Mobile banking mayhem
"Appearances are not reality; but they often can be a convincing alternative to it" is a famous quote from American author Dean Koontz that pretty much sums up the precarious nature of the Internet. Cybercriminals rely on consumers' inherent trust in their financial institutions to create convincing authentic-looking mobile banking apps and trick users into providing banking credentials and other sensitive data. Help Net Security has details from recent research that highlights the reality of consumers' vulnerability to malicious mobile apps.

Swifter cross-border payments
Faster payments is getting a boost with global financial messaging network SWIFT's gpi (global payments innovation). While the industry has been busy exploring blockchain technology for a faster, more secure payments infracture, with support from more than 150 financial institutions who have adopted its gpi, SWIFT has increased the number of cross-border transactions and improvided gpi payment times – crediting payments within minutes and even seconds. Finextra has the details.

Emotive recognition video banking
On social media platforms, users react to how they feel about a post or comment by clicking on an emoticon that indicates they like, feel angry or sad, or think its funny. Emotive analytics, which combines psychology and technology, uses algorithms to read facial expressions from a photo or video to reveal a user's mood. POPin Video Banking has added emotive recognition to its video banking platform to help banks enhance the customer experience. ATM Marketplace has the details.

Facial ID at ATMs
There has been exponential growth in the technology that powers ATMs, transforming simple cash dispensing machines into self-service mini-branches. Millions of customers around the world have replaced traditional debit cards with smartphones to access funds at the ATM. A bank in Hong Kong is exploring biometric technology that will give tech-savvy customers secure, convenient – and hands free – access to ATMs. ATM Marketplace has the details.

Interactive digital wallet
While technology has provided myriad ways for consumers to conduct banking and payment transactions from anywhere, there are some account servicing needs that require interaction with a bank employee over the phone or through online banking. Electronic payments provider Dynamics, Inc., has enhanced its digital Wallet Card with interactive technology that enables two-way communication between banks and customers via the card's display. ATM Marketplace has the details.

Digital ID system for CUs
The potential uses of distributed ledger technology (DLT) in the financial industry is being explored by firms of all sizes in the financial sector. Credit unions are no exception. CULedger, a consortium of American credit unions, has partnered with DLT software firm Evernym on a DLT-based digital ID solution to protect credit union members from ID theft and fraud. Finextra has the details.

Nextgen security solution
Machine learning – the science of giving computers the ability to learn with data without being explicitly programmed – can be an effective weapon in cyber defense strategies. The Cisco 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report reveals that the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to combat cyber threats is increasing, reports Enteprise Innovation. Sophisticated cybercriminals are also learning how to use technology to devise new ways to circumvent those defensive measures. Nuance Communications has enhanced its Security Suite platform with AI and behavioral biometrics to detect and mitigate fraud. Biometric Update has the details.

Spams, Scams and Breaches

Updates, Patches and Alerts...

See what other current hot cyber and technology topics affecting financial institutions BOL users are discussing in the Technology Forum.

And on the lighter side...

Cell phones have evolved exponentially from large, clunky devices designed to simply make phone calls to sleek, advanced handheld computers that help us complete nearly all our daily tasks. Cellular manufacturer Nokia has released a new phone with a unqiue twist on old-school features – and a fruity design.

First published on 03/02/2018

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