Nizar Jamal, CTO The roots of ubiquitous cloud technology have reached the mobile banking ecosystem, where it is redefining the way of doing business. As organizations adopt cloud to optimize their banking transactions, the need for a mechanism to secure the entire mobile-based processes is becoming imperative. As customers look for a unified platform to perform transactions on today’s smart devices, a convenient solution that is extremely secure for any type of transaction is the ultimate requirement.
To make mobile banking free from aforementioned impediments, Tyfone has introduced a comprehensive security platform for mobile banking and payment. The company provides a standard-based identity solution that complies with the all four identity assurance levels regulated by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and FFIEC guidelines in a unified platform.
“Unlike other fragmented solutions, our security platform not only addresses all four levels of identity security but also provides military-grade transaction security at the convenience of a button press,” begins Dr. Siva Narendra, CEO, Tyfone. The company’s U4ia identity platform provides a standard-based identity that can be integrated with any vendor, while allowing Financial Institutions (FIs) to control the information they exchange with the vendors. Unlike the inept solutions of third party vendors, U4ia promises complete and reliable security around core banking systems, bill pay engines, payment systems, leading smart card provisioning and ID management systems.
For NIST Level 4 authentication, Tyfone provides a compact smart card-based decentralized Bluetooth/ NFC hardware token—SideCard. For cryptographically strong authentication, the only action that users have to do is press the button on the card and validate their identity using mobile banking application to enable their transactions.
We provide robust security for mobile banking and mobile payment, where customer’sconvenience and privacy are preserved
Unlike RSA SecurID tokens, security in Tyfone’s hardware comes from the fact that credit cards—which are moving towards EMV smart card chips—can be used to hold the identity of users enabling decentralized identity verification. The technology also allows users to perform transactions that otherwise may not be possible without visiting a branch. FIs can configure the transactions and thresholds that can be performed for each level of authentication in Tyfone’s platform.
Tyfone’s connected SideCard hardware also securely stores biometrics in a decentralized manner instead of storing biometrics in the cloud—ensuring no catastrophic bulk compromise of biometrics is possible.
The company combines software and hardware security to make mobile banking more convenient for consumers. Tyfone’s technology makes it possible for FIs to handle both identity liability and identity control. “We provide robust security for mobile banking and payment, where customer’s convenience and privacy are preserved,” explains Nizar Jamal, CTO of Tyfone and former MD of Mobility at UBS.
Tyfone offers comprehensive solutions to its clients. To summarize with a case study, a FI approached Tyfone looking to solve their business banking customer pain point. Security only in the form of passwords was not sufficient, so analytics was implemented—where knowledge-based questions were asked. However, legitimate users didn’t necessarily know the answers to the software-generated questions. It had become a consumer pain point which could not be solved by software based security. Once the customer embraced the Tyfone platform, they were provided with step up to Level 4 security as needed and convenience to users at the same time. Tyfone offered them a cheaper solution that was more secure, efficient, and easy to implement.
