HSBC accepts selfies as proof of identity for opening bank accounts

Business customers can now open a bank account with HSBC using a selfie as proof of identity.

Selfies taken on the bank's new app can now be cross-referenced with passports and driving licences to prevent customers having to visit a bank branch in person.

Facial recognition technology is used to match similarities between photographs.

HSBC said the speed of taking a selfie compared to previous methods is likely to make it the verification method of choice.

Kim Kardashian and model Naomi Campbell take a selfie

MasterCard launched a pilot scheme in July to replace passwords with selfies, using a combination of facial and voice recognition software, and cardiac rhythm as measured by a smart wristband.

Amazon has also filed a patent to enable customers to pay by selfie in an effort to 

improve web security over the traditional password.

"While many conventional approaches rely on password entry for user authentication, these passwords can be stolen or discovered by other persons who can impersonate the user for any of a variety of tasks," Amazon 's submission to the US Patent and Trademark Office said.

Young woman taking selfie in bed

Earlier this year HSBC and First Direct pioneered the UK's largest biometric security technology roll-out to date, in an effort to strengthen the security of customer data, reduce the potential for fraud and improve the customer experience.

Voice recognition was introduced as a replacement for entering PINs or security passwords, and cross-checks more than 100 behavioural and physical identifiers in a person's voice, ranging from speed and pronunciation to the shape of a person's larynx, vocal tract and nasal passage.

A recent report explored how smartwatches and other wearables like fitness trackers could be hacked to reveal PINs and passwords stored in embedded sensors.

Yan Wang, co-author of the study, said: "Wearable devices can be exploited. Attackers can reproduce the trajectories of the user's hand then recover secret key entries to ATM cash machines, electronic door locks and keypad-controlled enterprise servers."

The researchers of the study conducted 5,000 key-entry tests on three key-based security systems, including an ATM, with 20 adults wearing a variety of technologies over 11 months.

SOURCE

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