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Tech Talk: Cyber intel for banks, ATM threats, biometric payments, and more!

Cyber intel for banks
Criminal gang targeting ATMs
Global ATM jackpotting
Financial services for immigrants
Digital payments provider branching out
Facial recognition payments
Solid gold payments card
Securing the customer experience
Giving fintech a human touch
Spam, Scams & Breaches
Updates, Patches & Alerts
and on the lighter side...

Cyber intel for banks
One of the largest underground card markets containing millions of credit and debit card records stolen from online and brick-and-mortar retailers over the past four years was ironically hacked by one of their own, reports Krebs on Security. BriansClub (named after security researcher Brian Krebs) sold approximately 9.1 million stolen credit cards, racking up $126 million in sales for the site. The data was hacked back by a competitor who has shared the intel with financial institutions. Threatpost has the details.

Criminal gang targeting ATMs
In our best James Cagney impression, there's a "dirty rat" on the loose and its targeting ATMs. FireEye security researchers have discovered a dirty RAT dubbed RDFSNIFFER that the notorious FIN7 hacking group has added to its arsenal of malicious tools. This RAT worms its way into compromised machines after a malware loader known as BOOSTWRITE delivers decrypted payloads straight into the memory and a module that hooks into the legitimate remote administration software of ATMs manufactured by NCR. Bleeping Computer has the details.

Global ATM jackpotting
In Russian, a "cutlet" is not only a cut of meat but is also used to refer to a bundle of cash. New details have recently been uncovered in an ongoing investigation into a string of 2017 ATM jackpotting attacks that deployed malware known as "Cutlet Maker." Global ATM attacks continue to impact banks and ATM manufacturers in the U.S., Latin America, Southeast Asia, and across the globe, reports digital media group Vice.

Financial services for immigrants
America, the land of the free, has more immigrants than any other country in the world. According to Pew Research, in 2017 a record 44.4 million people living in the U.S. were born in another country. One of the obstacles immigrants face in this country is access to banking services. Currently serving the immigrant population in Houston as part of a beta program, challenger bank Majority plans to expand its digital banking and build brick-and-mortar branches in major U.S. cities to offer immigrant communities in those areas greater access to financial services, reports Banking Dive.

Digital payments provider branching out
PayPal-owned digital wallet Venmo has become one of the most popular apps in the peer-to-peer (P2P) payments space for consumers who want to transfer funds quickly and easily using their mobile phone. The mobile payment service has partnered with Synchrony Financial to branch out into the credit cards market. In addition to debit card and online options the company added last year, the firm is rolling out a credit card for its 40 million users next year, reports Banking Dive.

Facial recognition payments
The mobile biometrics market is experiencing exponential growth, with a projected $2 trillion in authorized mobile biometric transactions by 2023. Facial recognition transactions are becoming increasingly popular with consumers and are expected to hit $9 billion by 2024. To take advantage of the growing demand for the technology, global payments solution SnapPay is rolling out facial recognition payment technology for its North American merchants. PYMNTS.com has the details.

Solid gold payments card
Appealing to a growing demand for unique and luxury payment cards, the Royal Mint has partnered with Mastercard and U.K. epayments provider Accomplish Financial to launch a solid gold payments card. The 18-karat gold card will have its own dedicated app and provide limitless spending and zero foreign exchange and transaction fees. The card also comes engraved with the cardholder's name and signature. Finextra has the details.

Securing the customer experience
With the exponential growth in digital banking and increased competition from fintech players, the financial industry is challenged with offering relevant products and services that strike just the right balance between customer experience and security. During a panel at a recent 2019 Bank Customer Experience Summit, two industry experts discussed digital security and its impact on the future of banking. ATM Marketplace has the details.

Giving fintech a human touch
In addition to providing secure digital offerings that meet consumers' demands for an enhanced customer experience, banks and fintech firms are further challenged with doing so without sacrificing the "human connection" consumers still want with their financial providers, reports Forbes. There are innovative ways financial providers can incorporate the human touch into their digital strategy. The Financial Brand 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...

Mobile phone technology has come a long way since the world's first cell phone was launched in 1983. The technology continues to evolve with smarter and more innovative features. Take a look at what the future holds for smartphones.

First published on 10/18/2019

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