Biometric Products Can Help Cybersecurity
A new report is predicting a significant rise in the use of biometric products, as organisations look to prevent fraud and protect their estate from organised cyber-crime groups.
Fraud, as the report highlights, is a serious problem. In the 2016 Cyber Security Breaches Survey published by the UK government, 65 percent of large firms in the UK detected a cybersecurity breach or attack in the past year.
Sandra Peaston, assistant director of insight at Cifas, says in the report that, “In 2015 Cifas member organisations recorded 170,000 cases of identity fraud. Clearly, the Personally Identifiable Information (PII) that is still the standard (names, address, birthdates, phone numbers etc.) and the ‘what you know' element of the identification/authentication process is in the hands of fraudsters and being exploited.”
The Callcredit Information Group says in its Fraud & Risk Report that while 75 percent of those surveyed have high confidence levels in their ability to prevent fraud, the number masks the obstacles to fraud prevention. Peaston said, “Given this, it's unsurprising that organisations are looking to biometrics to help overcome this problem. If an organisation finds it has two different applications, in two different names, but both accompanied by the same fingerprint (for example), it can easily see that at least one of those applications is highly likely to be fraud.”
It's through fraud, like phishing attacks, that criminals can gain access to a company's network. These are some of the biggest concerns of companies surveyed.
That number can seem impressive, but 29 percent of those surveyed cite a lack of investment in fraud prevention technology by their organisations and 28 percent who highlight a lack of employee education about security threats.
John Cannon, commercial director, fraud & ID, Callcredit Information Group, said in a release: “With cyber-attacks costing UK firms £30 billion in 2016, and with major global breaches reported in the first half of this year, leveraging technological advancements has never been more important for organisations' to instantly verify customers, identify risks, and ultimately stay ahead of the fraudsters.”
The research also found that a majority (74 percent) of organisations are struggling to manage the potential conflict that exists between customer acquisition and the need to validate identities when customers interact with them.
Cannon continued: “By allowing customers to complete document verification online, technology can also help simplify and improve the digital customer experience. Ultimately helping businesses onboard consumers as quickly, cost-effectively and seamlessly as possible.”
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