Banking customers demand online security and authentication

(20/08/2007)

A survey conducted by the Ponemon Institute, reveals that the only factor outweighing security in regard to customer satisfaction was poor customer treatment. 71% of UK retail banking customers do not rely on their banks to provide online security. Previous research also indicated that 47% of these consumers would move their accounts to institutions possessing more effective fraud detection and online security.

In addition, despite initial industry concerns about consumer resistance to adopting new authentication processes, recent research from Datamonitor reveals that more than 75% of online customers want more robust authentication in their online transactions. Furthermore, the majority of the 750 respondents showed a keen interest in adopting an additional authentication method beyond the standard username and password.

"The evolution of authentication is an important step in ensuring safe online interactions," said Melih Abdulhayoglu, CEO and Chief Security Architect of Comodo. "Consumers understand the dangers of not having an advanced authentication solution and are seeking new and better ways to protect themselves."

Comodo helps bolster consumer confidence through its PKI-based authentication solution. Comodo Authentication Solution incorporates several products, including Two Factor Authentication using a client certificate for authenticating the user to the institution, Comodo's Content Verification Certificate (CVC) to protect key content from being spoofed by a phisher, an EV SSL certificate for online visual authentication of a site's identity, and an Email certificate to provide a digital signature and encryption to Email correspondence.

Two Factor (TF) Client Certificates

* Comodo TF is a FFIEC compliant two factor solution because it delivers digital certificates to end users' PC thus converting their PCs into a "smart token"
* Comodo TF is easy for institutions to deploy because it delivers total digital lifecycle management functionality through a server application to automatically issue and manage customers' digital certificates
* One of the lowest-cost solutions due to Comodo's established PKI infrastructure and digital certificate lifecycle management processes.
* Doesn't require members to alter their banking behavior once their DigitalID has been created, making it easy for customers to adopt
* Provides ease of integration, ease of adoption by members, and ease of configurability, reducing operational expenses.

Content Verification Certificates (CVC)

* Protects against man-in-the middle attacks, phishing and pharming
* Delivers non-browser "green good to go" indicator confirming a site's identity
* Members can verify its identity using a reader (VerificationEngine) which can be easily downloaded

EV SSL Certificate

* Provides encryption and authentication of business identities with a new confirming green indicator in the address bar that is delivered through the browser's interface
* The URL of the authenticated site turns green and displays the credentials of both the site owner and the Certification Authority that provided the certificate

Email Certificate

* Ensures that authentic Emails from a financial institution can be verified
* Uses a digital signature feature so customers will know they are responding to their own bank

"Online security and authentication, especially among financial institutions, has gone from a grey area to a flat-out demand," said Melih Abdulhayoglu, CEO and Chief Security Architect of Comodo. "Banking customers know the dangers they face without authentication, but they don't want to be hassled or confused in getting it. We are delighted that we can deliver both compliance and ease of use in the same solution."

Related topics:  Authentication and identity management 

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