Category: Gemalto

Published: 22 June, 2022

Vacation season is officially upon us, and after Covid-19 kept most of the world grounded for the best part of two years, airports and airlines are in for one of the busiest summers on record.

Thankfully, there are examples of technology use cases being implemented to save time at busy airports.

Use of Digital ID

The concept of Digital ID is one that has grown exponentially in recent years. Whether it’s ID cards, health cards, passports or driving licenses  – we’ve long relied on various forms of physical ID to prove our identity. Just think back to the last time you flew – how many documents you needed, and the number of times you had to show them.

So, how would this work in an airport scenario?

Before arriving at the airport for travel, the passenger would download the relevant app from the airline they are travelling with. From there they would upload the relevant travel documents – creating a secure digitized credential that is accepted by the local country’s travel security authority.

When passing through airport checks, the passenger would then simply open the app, and present an auto generated QR code. This process would streamline the ID verification process, allowing travelers to move through security lines faster – also easing pressure on airport staff.

American Airlines Takes Off with Mobile ID

Mobile ID has taken off this summer, with American Airlines announcing that they are working with Thales’ trusted mobile identification technology to eliminate the need for passengers to show physical IDs with the creation of a TSA-approved mobile digital ID.

The Airside Digital Identity App allows users to create a secure and encrypted digitalized version of government-issued identification (driver’s license or passport) which airline passengers can then store their ID on their smartphone and present it at the required checkpoints.

Commenting on the announcement this week, Tony Lo Brutto, Vice President, Thales Identity and Biometric Solutions North America said:

“Thales trusted mobile digital identity technology provides an immediate way for all citizens across certain states to use their physical driver’s license or U.S. passports to create a TSA-approved mobile digital credential for travel. It provides authorities such as the TSA with the opportunity to securely and conveniently verify IDs, simplifying the process to allow travelers to get through security lines faster. It has never been easier to verify identity or access services – both online and in the ‘real world’. This pilot perfectly complements our worldwide “Fly to Gate” references, highlighting Thales expertise in enabling both security and convenience to travelers with digital solutions.’

The Future of Air Travel

This example of Digital ID is just one example of how leveraging state of the art technology can revolutionize the airport experience.

Whether it’s through a combination of facial recognition, multimodal biometric checking or automation – the technology is there to make the airport operations more streamlined, efficient and secure – both for staff and travelers.

Throughout this summer keep an eye out on the DIS blog as we continue to explore how technology can change and improve the airport experience.

The post Why Digital ID Should be On the Vacation Checklist appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

In the past decade, the banking sector has undergone a massive transformation – putting speed, security, environmental considerations and user experience at its core. This blog post will be looking at how Digital PIN – a modern way to set, deliver or recover an EMV Card PIN code – is part of the modern card program strategy   

The PIN Code as a Card Verification Method for EMV Payment Cards 

The 4 digit PIN Code is a technology that has come to be part of everyday life and was introduced as a Card Verification Method (CVM) in the EMV standard to perform user authentication.  

PIN code verification can be performed online or offline.  The EMV standards allows two additional forms of CVM:  signature and “nothing” for low-amount contactless payments. 

What is a Digital PIN vs Current EMV card PIN code as we know it? 

Currently, when a customer registers for a new EMV card, it will typically be shipped to them in the post. This will be followed by another letter containing the 4-digit pin number that’s been assigned to them.  

Digital PIN refers to a new “digital delivery and management” mechanism: instead of a PIN code being sent in the post, it is delivered via an app (or secure SMS) enabling customers to use their card with seconds of it arriving.  

This virtual PIN delivery looks set to replace paper mailing delivery.  Users can create their preferred 4 digit PIN code right from the app.  Later on they can recover their PIN code when lost, or change the current code for a new one. All these happen instantaneously and give the user more ‘real-time’ control than ever. But that’s not the only way users are gaining more control over their banking. 

Modern card issuance:  

A new approach to the payment card lifecycle is becoming more common. It puts the user in control to order, manage and use banking cards, right from the bank’s mobile app 

The PIN code delivery method using a paper mailer was appropriate in a physical first, digital later era when getting a new card took a few days. Switching to a digital PIN delivery solution meets three crucial new trends: 

  • First, digital delivery is instantaneous and therefore more in-line with consumer expectations.  Cards can be activated and used right away, leading to higher transaction rates.  The customer controls both card issuance and PIN management 24/7 from their app. 
  • Second, digital delivery for the PIN code is more environmentally-friendly as it cuts the need for paper mailers.  Given the billions of EMV payment cards delivered worldwide every year, this is a significant environmental win as you can see in this Infographic. 
  • Third, as we move to the people are using more digital cards. The rise of digital wallets and online payments is changing the proportion of physical/digital cards that each individual cardholders uses every day and consequently the need for a digital PIN delivery.    

This is part of the new, global card experience.  Fintechs have led the way and demonstrated the look and feel of modern mobile banking apps, and now the entire market is following suit – Digital PIN delivery is no longer “nice to have”, but critical to the modern card user experience. 

As we are now heading into a digital first, physical later approach to payment credentials, Thales helps financial services players implement modern card programmes with the Thales D1 issuing platform.  This brings simple, UX level APIs that orchestrate the entire issuing stack. It manages both the mobile front end to implement features such as Digital PIN but also orchestrate all the core banking infrastructure to build the three following use cases:   

  1. Set a preferred PIN code 
  1. Securely display the PIN code in the app in accordance to PCI DSS regulations  
  1. Allow fast PIN code recovery in-app  

 

The bank mobile app is going through a revolution and Digital PIN is a visible part of it.   

The post Digital PINS – The Next Step in Digital First Banking appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

The banking industry has undergone a huge transformation in recent years and continues to transform as we head into the realm of real-time, digital first (and physical later) banking and payment. Characterized by the need to do things more cost-effectively, sustainably, faster, and with user experience at its core – modern card program strategies are revolutionizing the sector and embracing these changes will be vital for a bank’s survival.  

To set some context, here is just a short recap of the challenges and changes currently facing the banking sector: 

Online branches growth in popularity:

Can you remember the last time you visited a bank branch in person? If not, then you’re not alone – under the lead of agile fintechs and neo banks, the capabilities of banking apps have improved so much that there are very few reasons for customers to visit in person. In fact a survey from KMPG found that one in five UK consumers haven’t visited a bank branch since before the Covid-19 pandemic – a trend we will likely see continue.  

Fintechs are challenging the status quo:

Recent years have seen digital-first challenger brands give consumers greater choice and flexibility – revolutionizing personal banking. Not burdened by decades of legacy tech to contend with – these brands have managed to quickly design products and solutions that have user experience solely front of mind, and traditional institutions are forced to do the same.  Real-time, quick services, simple yet secure is what is in the DNA of such neo stakeholders in the financial sector. 

Boom in contactless payments:

Recent data that shows that in 2020 the number of people in the UK who registered for mobile payments grew by three quarters to over 17 million. And in December 2021, contactless payments reached its highest recorded level, accounting for 69% of all debit card transactions, and 56% of all credit card transactions – a trend that is expected to continue to rise.  

A Modern Card program and strategy is about unifying and improving the customer’s banking and payment journey with real-time digital card issuance and complete control of all their payment credentials. This blog series will explore why a Modern Card Program is an essential part of this and will address the challenges of bringing it fruition.   

 

Challenge #1: Managing connectivity with payment schemes to successfully deploy EMV tokenization and associated card services   

The growing demand for mobile, user-centric services for card issuance is front of mind for all card issuers, processors, and wallet providers. As we’ve already discussed – the banking sector has been transformed – driven by customer expectation to be in control 24/7, via their smartphones or a modern web interface. People want to order their physical, digital or virtual card instantly, via their mobile app and/or the web, then use it to pay at stores and online.  Cardholders want to be in control of their card’s settings. These services are no longer a nice to have – but an expectation.  

However, when it comes to traditional banks that have been issuing EMV cards for years, the core banking infrastructure in place is often not optimized to support real time services, nor to deliver a rich mobile experience. Beyond tokenization for digital wallets, launching new services such as virtual card issuance and secure display, 3DS, Click-to-pay or pay-by-instalments can be extremely challenging.  

Card issuers can find plenty of technology partners to implement new mobile-centric card services. For digital card for instance, major Payment Schemes provide access to their EMV Tokenization services. However, beyond APIs, managing connectivity with such network services is a real project on its own.  Frequent API updates and rapid innovation rollouts require a very close relationship with payment networks: a relationship that goes beyond the usual scope of work for developers.  

Success for such modern card programs relies heavily on the deployment of modern card issuing platforms, implementing a brand new mobile and web front end but also orchestrating the entire core banking systems involved in the card issuing stack and the card life cycle management (systems managing accounts, transactions, claims and settlement, among many more). 

EMV tokenization alone represent the lion share of such modern card programs services and require deep use case knowledge that can only be acquired by developing a close relationship with the token service providers.  Thales D1 has a unique role of the EMV tokenization market with a preferred partnership with leading payment networks, removing the complexity for developer to re-invent uses cases from scratch, using system APIs with no orchestration across the card payment stack 

By somewhat “tokenizing their relationship” with token services, provided via Thales and the D1 platform, developers can focus on rolling out innovative services for their cardholders while Thales deliver the tool to execute development in record time and cost. 

The post Deploying a Modern Bank Card Program: Part One appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Imagine you’re a French national going to study abroad in Greece for one semester, and all the logistics involved in setting up home there temporarily. All these logistics often require various touch points where you will have to prove your identity – usually with various means (passport, proof of address, education, income etc.) 

When you arrive at the Greek university, you just need to open your wallet and present a digitalised version of your diploma for the university officer to check your eligibility by simply scanning a QR code to create a secure communication channel from which encrypted data can be exchanged. This information has already been validated and proven by a trusted authority. The same process would apply to prove your identity  to easily allow you to swiftly set up a Greek bank account, sign a rental contract  – or even prove age on a student night out. Not only it becomes easy to share official documents but those documents are protected and your data is encrypted at all time, and is only available to the right person. 

Journey from hypothetical to reality 

This hypothetical scenario is not one ripped from the science fiction pages, or the result of a futurist prediction. There has been an acceleration towards digital identity recently, meaning that digital IDs are not just used by so called ‘tech-savvy digital natives’, but the wider population. The Covid-19 pandemic, and associated lockdowns served as a major catalyst for this.  

It’s fair to say then, that the concept of digital identification is already well established, and using a smartphone to board a plane, store bankcards or prove vaccination status has become second nature to many of us. But the experience is often clunky, with many forms to fill in, and is not as secure as it could be.  

In fact, a major survey conducted into EU ID by Thales revealed that 45% of Europeans are currently relying on insecure, unofficial, ‘DIY’ (do it yourself) scans and photos of their cards and documents to help prove their identity and entitlements.  

Countdown to European digital identification 

While the concept of digital identification is already well established, the development of internationally accepted electronic identity (eID) systems has been piecemeal and inconsistent. 

If we look at the EU as an example – only 14% of key public services across all EU Member States allow cross-border authentication with eID and, according to the European Commission there is a need to improve acceptance of the scheme and user experience. These roadblocks certainly don’t help in building a strong level of consumer trust.  

However, this is set to change with the introduction of the latest legislation on European Digital Identity – eIDAS2. In short, eIDAS2 means that by September 2023, each EU Member State must make a digital ‘wallet’ available to every citizen and business who wants one. In tandem, service providers in both public and private sector organisations, such as banks and telcos, will have to accept it as proof of certain personal attributes. From providing electronic signatures to paying fines or accessing health services, EU citizens will be able to use the eIDAS wallet, in every Member State, and generating millions of authentications every day.  

Thales’s research found that the wallet is set to be welcomed with open arms. Two out of three Europeans citizens are looking forward to the arrival of an EU-backed Digital ID Wallet for storing their ID card, driving license and other official documents and signed attestations on a smartphone. 

Digital ID becoming mainstream 

This acceleration towards Digital ID isn’t just taking place in  the EU – just earlier this year the UK government proposed legislation to secure digital identity, even creating the Office for Digital Identities and Attributes.  

With just under a year away until eIDAS2 comes into force, it will be interesting to see how the conversation, debate and appetite for digital IDs continues to evolve.  

In the countdown towards the eIDAS2, keep checking back on the DIS blog where we’ll be discussing the following topics:  

  • Generational and regional attitudes to the wallet  
  • What Citizens want from a wallet  
  • Challenges and hurdles to overcome to build a streamlined, secure and efficient wallet 
For further reading please visit:  

The post Day in the life of a digital citizen after eIDAS2 appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

The banking industry has undergone a huge transformation in recent years and continues to transform as we head into the realm of real-time, digital first (and physical later) banking and payment. Characterized by the need to do things more cost-effectively, sustainably, faster, and with user experience at its core – modern card program strategies are revolutionizing the sector and embracing these changes will be vital for a bank’s survival.  

To set some context, here is just a short recap of the challenges and changes currently facing the banking sector: 

Online branches growth in popularity:

Can you remember the last time you visited a bank branch in person? If not, then you’re not alone – under the lead of agile fintechs and neo banks, the capabilities of banking apps have improved so much that there are very few reasons for customers to visit in person. In fact a survey from KMPG found that one in five UK consumers haven’t visited a bank branch since before the Covid-19 pandemic – a trend we will likely see continue.  

Fintechs are challenging the status quo:

Recent years have seen digital-first challenger brands give consumers greater choice and flexibility – revolutionizing personal banking. Not burdened by decades of legacy tech to contend with – these brands have managed to quickly design products and solutions that have user experience solely front of mind, and traditional institutions are forced to do the same.  Real-time, quick services, simple yet secure is what is in the DNA of such neo stakeholders in the financial sector. 

Boom in contactless payments:

Recent data that shows that in 2020 the number of people in the UK who registered for mobile payments grew by three quarters to over 17 million. And in December 2021, contactless payments reached its highest recorded level, accounting for 69% of all debit card transactions, and 56% of all credit card transactions – a trend that is expected to continue to rise.  

A Modern Card program and strategy is about unifying and improving the customer’s banking and payment journey with real-time digital card issuance and complete control of all their payment credentials. This blog series will explore why a Modern Card Program is an essential part of this and will address the challenges of bringing it fruition.   

 

Challenge #1: Managing connectivity with payment schemes to successfully deploy EMV tokenization and associated card services   

The growing demand for mobile, user-centric services for card issuance is front of mind for all card issuers, processors, and wallet providers. As we’ve already discussed – the banking sector has been transformed – driven by customer expectation to be in control 24/7, via their smartphones or a modern web interface. People want to order their physical, digital or virtual card instantly, via their mobile app and/or the web, then use it to pay at stores and online.  Cardholders want to be in control of their card’s settings. These services are no longer a nice to have – but an expectation.  

However, when it comes to traditional banks that have been issuing EMV cards for years, the core banking infrastructure in place is often not optimized to support real time services, nor to deliver a rich mobile experience. Beyond tokenization for digital wallets, launching new services such as virtual card issuance and secure display, 3DS, Click-to-pay or pay-by-instalments can be extremely challenging.  

Card issuers can find plenty of technology partners to implement new mobile-centric card services. For digital card for instance, major Payment Schemes provide access to their EMV Tokenization services. However, beyond APIs, managing connectivity with such network services is a real project on its own.  Frequent API updates and rapid innovation rollouts require a very close relationship with payment networks: a relationship that goes beyond the usual scope of work for developers.  

Success for such modern card programs relies heavily on the deployment of modern card issuing platforms, implementing a brand new mobile and web front end but also orchestrating the entire core banking systems involved in the card issuing stack and the card life cycle management (systems managing accounts, transactions, claims and settlement, among many more). 

EMV tokenization alone represent the lion share of such modern card programs services and require deep use case knowledge that can only be acquired by developing a close relationship with the token service providers.  Thales D1 has a unique role of the EMV tokenization market with a preferred partnership with leading payment networks, removing the complexity for developer to re-invent uses cases from scratch, using system APIs with no orchestration across the card payment stack 

By somewhat “tokenizing their relationship” with token services, provided via Thales and the D1 platform, developers can focus on rolling out innovative services for their cardholders while Thales deliver the tool to execute development in record time and cost. 

The post Deploying a Modern Bank Card Program: Part One appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

…. — .– / -.. .. -.. / — — .-. … . / -.-. — -.. . / -.-. …. .- -. –. . / -.-. — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- -.-. .. — -. ..–..

In today’s society, instantaneous messaging is something we both need and expect in our everyday lives. Just think about the number of times you rely on it in a single day; work emails, IMing colleagues, WhatsApping friends. It’s almost impossible to cast your mind back to what communication looked like centuries ago.

If we go back a couple hundred years, most messages could only be delivered as quick as the fastest horse could ride. Messages that had to be delivered over a long distance were carried by messengers, or were signaled visually.

So, how did we go from that – to what we’re using today?  One of the landmark milestones in the communication revolution was that of Morse Code. On this day (May 24th) 177 years ago, the first morse code message was sent – changing the landscape of communication forever. With this in mind we wanted to take a look back through the biggest milestones in communications.

The Invention of Morse Code

– …. . / .. -. …- . -. – .. — -. / — ..-. / — — .-. … . / -.-. — -.. .

Developed in the 1830s and 1840s by Samuel Morse and others, the telegraph revolutionised long-distance communication – transmitting electrical signals over a wire laid between stations.

In addition to helping invent the telegraph, Morse developed a code that assigned a set of dots and dashes to each letter of the English alphabet, allowing for simple transmission of complex messages across telegraph lines. In 1844, Morse sent his first telegraph message, from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore. Although the telegraph had fallen out of widespread use by the start of the 21st century, it laid the groundwork for future inventions.

The Communication Revolution

– …. . / -.-. — — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- – .. — -. / .-. . …- — .-.. ..- – .. — -.

Telephone: The success of telegraphy and Morse Code created an appetite and need for instant communication, ultimately leasing to the creation of the telephone – with credit resting with Scottish scientist Alexander Graham Bell. The first commercial telephone services were set up on both sides of the Atlantic in 1878-79.

Satellite: In 1958, a United States satellite was used to transmit a presidential Christmas message to the rest of the world. In 1960, the Echo satellite was launched by NASA for radio communication; that same year the first-ever repeater active satellite was launched. Two years later in 1962, as part of an international project involving several companies and nation states, the world’s first direct relay satellite for commercial communication was launched – Telstar.

Internet: In the height of the cold war during the 1960s, MIT researcher JCR Licklider developed a plan to create a “galactic network” of computers which would enable important US leaders to talk to each other in case the Soviet Union disabled or ‘hacked’ the telephone system.

Jump forward to the 1970s, American computer scientist Vinton Cerf developed a system for the various small networks of the world to talk to each other or do the “handshake”. This critical innovation was called Transmission Control Protocol or TCP, later expanded to include Internet Protocol or IP. The Internet was established, but in its first decade it was limited to universities and researchers. That changed in the 1990s with the coming of the World Wide Web, invented by British scientist Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 while working at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research.

Mobile Cellular Technology: The age of the handheld cellular mobile phone began in April 1973 when Motorola’s Martin Cooper made a mobile phone call in front of journalists. Since then, there have been various developments in mobile technology. The 1980s witnessed the launch of the analogue cellular system – known as 1G. 2G followed in the 1990s with the rise of GSM technology, marking the switch from analogue to digital, with the advent of 3G in the 00s making it possible to stream video and music on phones. Mobile data really started to boom with the arrival of the first iOS and Android smartphones and 4G networks.

The Future of Communication

– …. . / ..-. ..- – ..- .-. . / — ..-. / -.-. — — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- – .. — -.

When we talk about the future of communication at the moment, there isn’t a single conversation that doesn’t come back to 5G.

It’s reported that by 2024 5G will account for 21% of the world’s mobile connections – and its connectivity will power a world of new services, not just benefitting how we communicate with each other – but with our devices, and surroundings. 5G unleashes a powerful combination of extraordinary speed, expanded bandwidth, low latency, and increased power efficiency perfect for connecting objects. It will make our cities smarter and our entertainment more immersive.

Sometimes it’s hard to comprehend just how we’ve gone from coded dots and dashes to talking about IoT devices and smart cities – but it all harks back to that first transmission on May 24th 177 years ago.

The post Morse Code: How did it change communication? appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

Vacation season is officially upon us, and after Covid-19 kept most of the world grounded for the best part of two years, airports and airlines are in for one of the busiest summers on record.

Thankfully, there are examples of technology use cases being implemented to save time at busy airports.

Use of Digital ID

The concept of Digital ID is one that has grown exponentially in recent years. Whether it’s ID cards, health cards, passports or driving licenses  – we’ve long relied on various forms of physical ID to prove our identity. Just think back to the last time you flew – how many documents you needed, and the number of times you had to show them.

So, how would this work in an airport scenario?

Before arriving at the airport for travel, the passenger would download the relevant app from the airline they are travelling with. From there they would upload the relevant travel documents – creating a secure digitized credential that is accepted by the local country’s travel security authority.

When passing through airport checks, the passenger would then simply open the app, and present an auto generated QR code. This process would streamline the ID verification process, allowing travelers to move through security lines faster – also easing pressure on airport staff.

American Airlines Takes Off with Mobile ID

Mobile ID has taken off this summer, with American Airlines announcing that they are working with Thales’ trusted mobile identification technology to eliminate the need for passengers to show physical IDs with the creation of a TSA-approved mobile digital ID.

The Airside Digital Identity App allows users to create a secure and encrypted digitalized version of government-issued identification (driver’s license or passport) which airline passengers can then store their ID on their smartphone and present it at the required checkpoints.

Commenting on the announcement this week, Tony Lo Brutto, Vice President, Thales Identity and Biometric Solutions North America said:

“Thales trusted mobile digital identity technology provides an immediate way for all citizens across certain states to use their physical driver’s license or U.S. passports to create a TSA-approved mobile digital credential for travel. It provides authorities such as the TSA with the opportunity to securely and conveniently verify IDs, simplifying the process to allow travelers to get through security lines faster. It has never been easier to verify identity or access services – both online and in the ‘real world’. This pilot perfectly complements our worldwide “Fly to Gate” references, highlighting Thales expertise in enabling both security and convenience to travelers with digital solutions.’

The Future of Air Travel

This example of Digital ID is just one example of how leveraging state of the art technology can revolutionize the airport experience.

Whether it’s through a combination of facial recognition, multimodal biometric checking or automation – the technology is there to make the airport operations more streamlined, efficient and secure – both for staff and travelers.

Throughout this summer keep an eye out on the DIS blog as we continue to explore how technology can change and improve the airport experience.

The post Why Digital ID Should be On the Vacation Checklist appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

In the past decade, the banking sector has undergone a massive transformation – putting speed, security, environmental considerations and user experience at its core. This blog post will be looking at how Digital PIN – a modern way to set, deliver or recover an EMV Card PIN code – is part of the modern card program strategy   

The PIN Code as a Card Verification Method for EMV Payment Cards 

The 4 digit PIN Code is a technology that has come to be part of everyday life and was introduced as a Card Verification Method (CVM) in the EMV standard to perform user authentication.  

PIN code verification can be performed online or offline.  The EMV standards allows two additional forms of CVM:  signature and “nothing” for low-amount contactless payments. 

What is a Digital PIN vs Current EMV card PIN code as we know it? 

Currently, when a customer registers for a new EMV card, it will typically be shipped to them in the post. This will be followed by another letter containing the 4-digit pin number that’s been assigned to them.  

Digital PIN refers to a new “digital delivery and management” mechanism: instead of a PIN code being sent in the post, it is delivered via an app (or secure SMS) enabling customers to use their card with seconds of it arriving.  

This virtual PIN delivery looks set to replace paper mailing delivery.  Users can create their preferred 4 digit PIN code right from the app.  Later on they can recover their PIN code when lost, or change the current code for a new one. All these happen instantaneously and give the user more ‘real-time’ control than ever. But that’s not the only way users are gaining more control over their banking. 

Modern card issuance:  

A new approach to the payment card lifecycle is becoming more common. It puts the user in control to order, manage and use banking cards, right from the bank’s mobile app 

The PIN code delivery method using a paper mailer was appropriate in a physical first, digital later era when getting a new card took a few days. Switching to a digital PIN delivery solution meets three crucial new trends: 

  • First, digital delivery is instantaneous and therefore more in-line with consumer expectations.  Cards can be activated and used right away, leading to higher transaction rates.  The customer controls both card issuance and PIN management 24/7 from their app. 
  • Second, digital delivery for the PIN code is more environmentally-friendly as it cuts the need for paper mailers.  Given the billions of EMV payment cards delivered worldwide every year, this is a significant environmental win as you can see in this Infographic. 
  • Third, as we move to the people are using more digital cards. The rise of digital wallets and online payments is changing the proportion of physical/digital cards that each individual cardholders uses every day and consequently the need for a digital PIN delivery.    

This is part of the new, global card experience.  Fintechs have led the way and demonstrated the look and feel of modern mobile banking apps, and now the entire market is following suit – Digital PIN delivery is no longer “nice to have”, but critical to the modern card user experience. 

As we are now heading into a digital first, physical later approach to payment credentials, Thales helps financial services players implement modern card programmes with the Thales D1 issuing platform.  This brings simple, UX level APIs that orchestrate the entire issuing stack. It manages both the mobile front end to implement features such as Digital PIN but also orchestrate all the core banking infrastructure to build the three following use cases:   

  1. Set a preferred PIN code 
  1. Securely display the PIN code in the app in accordance to PCI DSS regulations  
  1. Allow fast PIN code recovery in-app  

 

The bank mobile app is going through a revolution and Digital PIN is a visible part of it.   

The post Digital PINS – The Next Step in Digital First Banking appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

In the past decade, the banking sector has undergone a massive transformation – putting speed, security, environmental considerations and user experience at its core. This blog post will be looking at how Digital PIN – a modern way to set, deliver or recover an EMV Card PIN code – is part of the modern card program strategy   

The PIN Code as a Card Verification Method for EMV Payment Cards 

The 4 digit PIN Code is a technology that has come to be part of everyday life and was introduced as a Card Verification Method (CVM) in the EMV standard to perform user authentication.  

PIN code verification can be performed online or offline.  The EMV standards allows two additional forms of CVM:  signature and “nothing” for low-amount contactless payments. 

What is a Digital PIN vs Current EMV card PIN code as we know it? 

Currently, when a customer registers for a new EMV card, it will typically be shipped to them in the post. This will be followed by another letter containing the 4-digit pin number that’s been assigned to them.  

Digital PIN refers to a new “digital delivery and management” mechanism: instead of a PIN code being sent in the post, it is delivered via an app (or secure SMS) enabling customers to use their card with seconds of it arriving.  

This virtual PIN delivery looks set to replace paper mailing delivery.  Users can create their preferred 4 digit PIN code right from the app.  Later on they can recover their PIN code when lost, or change the current code for a new one. All these happen instantaneously and give the user more ‘real-time’ control than ever. But that’s not the only way users are gaining more control over their banking. 

Modern card issuance:  

A new approach to the payment card lifecycle is becoming more common. It puts the user in control to order, manage and use banking cards, right from the bank’s mobile app 

The PIN code delivery method using a paper mailer was appropriate in a physical first, digital later era when getting a new card took a few days. Switching to a digital PIN delivery solution meets three crucial new trends: 

  • First, digital delivery is instantaneous and therefore more in-line with consumer expectations.  Cards can be activated and used right away, leading to higher transaction rates.  The customer controls both card issuance and PIN management 24/7 from their app. 
  • Second, digital delivery for the PIN code is more environmentally-friendly as it cuts the need for paper mailers.  Given the billions of EMV payment cards delivered worldwide every year, this is a significant environmental win as you can see in this Infographic. 
  • Third, as we move to the people are using more digital cards. The rise of digital wallets and online payments is changing the proportion of physical/digital cards that each individual cardholders uses every day and consequently the need for a digital PIN delivery.    

This is part of the new, global card experience.  Fintechs have led the way and demonstrated the look and feel of modern mobile banking apps, and now the entire market is following suit – Digital PIN delivery is no longer “nice to have”, but critical to the modern card user experience. 

As we are now heading into a digital first, physical later approach to payment credentials, Thales helps financial services players implement modern card programmes with the Thales D1 issuing platform.  This brings simple, UX level APIs that orchestrate the entire issuing stack. It manages both the mobile front end to implement features such as Digital PIN but also orchestrate all the core banking infrastructure to build the three following use cases:   

  1. Set a preferred PIN code 
  1. Securely display the PIN code in the app in accordance to PCI DSS regulations  
  1. Allow fast PIN code recovery in-app  

 

The bank mobile app is going through a revolution and Digital PIN is a visible part of it.   

The post Digital PINS – The Next Step in Digital First Banking appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.

…. — .– / -.. .. -.. / — — .-. … . / -.-. — -.. . / -.-. …. .- -. –. . / -.-. — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- -.-. .. — -. ..–..

In today’s society, instantaneous messaging is something we both need and expect in our everyday lives. Just think about the number of times you rely on it in a single day; work emails, IMing colleagues, WhatsApping friends. It’s almost impossible to cast your mind back to what communication looked like centuries ago.

If we go back a couple hundred years, most messages could only be delivered as quick as the fastest horse could ride. Messages that had to be delivered over a long distance were carried by messengers, or were signaled visually.

So, how did we go from that – to what we’re using today?  One of the landmark milestones in the communication revolution was that of Morse Code. On this day (May 24th) 177 years ago, the first morse code message was sent – changing the landscape of communication forever. With this in mind we wanted to take a look back through the biggest milestones in communications.

The Invention of Morse Code

– …. . / .. -. …- . -. – .. — -. / — ..-. / — — .-. … . / -.-. — -.. .

Developed in the 1830s and 1840s by Samuel Morse and others, the telegraph revolutionised long-distance communication – transmitting electrical signals over a wire laid between stations.

In addition to helping invent the telegraph, Morse developed a code that assigned a set of dots and dashes to each letter of the English alphabet, allowing for simple transmission of complex messages across telegraph lines. In 1844, Morse sent his first telegraph message, from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore. Although the telegraph had fallen out of widespread use by the start of the 21st century, it laid the groundwork for future inventions.

The Communication Revolution

– …. . / -.-. — — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- – .. — -. / .-. . …- — .-.. ..- – .. — -.

Telephone: The success of telegraphy and Morse Code created an appetite and need for instant communication, ultimately leasing to the creation of the telephone – with credit resting with Scottish scientist Alexander Graham Bell. The first commercial telephone services were set up on both sides of the Atlantic in 1878-79.

Satellite: In 1958, a United States satellite was used to transmit a presidential Christmas message to the rest of the world. In 1960, the Echo satellite was launched by NASA for radio communication; that same year the first-ever repeater active satellite was launched. Two years later in 1962, as part of an international project involving several companies and nation states, the world’s first direct relay satellite for commercial communication was launched – Telstar.

Internet: In the height of the cold war during the 1960s, MIT researcher JCR Licklider developed a plan to create a “galactic network” of computers which would enable important US leaders to talk to each other in case the Soviet Union disabled or ‘hacked’ the telephone system.

Jump forward to the 1970s, American computer scientist Vinton Cerf developed a system for the various small networks of the world to talk to each other or do the “handshake”. This critical innovation was called Transmission Control Protocol or TCP, later expanded to include Internet Protocol or IP. The Internet was established, but in its first decade it was limited to universities and researchers. That changed in the 1990s with the coming of the World Wide Web, invented by British scientist Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 while working at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research.

Mobile Cellular Technology: The age of the handheld cellular mobile phone began in April 1973 when Motorola’s Martin Cooper made a mobile phone call in front of journalists. Since then, there have been various developments in mobile technology. The 1980s witnessed the launch of the analogue cellular system – known as 1G. 2G followed in the 1990s with the rise of GSM technology, marking the switch from analogue to digital, with the advent of 3G in the 00s making it possible to stream video and music on phones. Mobile data really started to boom with the arrival of the first iOS and Android smartphones and 4G networks.

The Future of Communication

– …. . / ..-. ..- – ..- .-. . / — ..-. / -.-. — — — ..- -. .. -.-. .- – .. — -.

When we talk about the future of communication at the moment, there isn’t a single conversation that doesn’t come back to 5G.

It’s reported that by 2024 5G will account for 21% of the world’s mobile connections – and its connectivity will power a world of new services, not just benefitting how we communicate with each other – but with our devices, and surroundings. 5G unleashes a powerful combination of extraordinary speed, expanded bandwidth, low latency, and increased power efficiency perfect for connecting objects. It will make our cities smarter and our entertainment more immersive.

Sometimes it’s hard to comprehend just how we’ve gone from coded dots and dashes to talking about IoT devices and smart cities – but it all harks back to that first transmission on May 24th 177 years ago.

The post Morse Code: How did it change communication? appeared first on Cybersecurity Insiders.