The COVID-19 pandemic has made in-person banking processes inconvenient, which prompted some to utilize digital services instead. The ongoing pandemic has shuttered financial institutions prompting them to transition in-person processes to digital online means. Sales, purchases, receipts, and payments are being conducted through online and mobile platforms.
However, even in the age of during a pandemic, criminals are relentstless in committing felonies. This surge in digital financial activities is seen as an opportunity to breach firms in the financial sector.
The FBI has recorded more cases of fraud in the first few months of quarantine than a year’s worth of fraud complaints in 2019. Most cyber criminals take advantage of weaknesses in a financial company’s system.
The worth of the data and assets kept by these firms are considered valuable commodities in the criminal world. Hence, they try to adapt to the security measures implemented by businesses to breach data and carry out illegal activities.
With these prevalent threats, financial institutions need to stay one step ahead of attackers. Effective customer authentication processes can help these companies verify that the individual trying to gain access to existing accounts or create a new one is legitimate.
By utilizing new security methods in onboarding clients and authorizing transactions, these firms can ensure the safety of the personal information and funds entrusted to them.
Provided below is an infographic from Ipsidy which discusses the significance of using trusted user identity verification in the financial sector.
Infographic Source: https://www.ipsidy.com/blog/the-importance-of-trusted-user-identity-verification-to-counter-fraud-in-the-financial-sector-infographic