HSBC has told the BBC that it is going all-in on biometric security, replacing both passwords and memorable questions with a combination of Touch ID and voice-recognition. The bank says that the option will be offered first to customers of its UK branchless subsidiary First Direct before rolling out to 15 million HSBC customers.
First Direct’s customers will be offered the voice and fingerprint recognition system over the next few weeks, followed by HSBC’s in the summer.
Francesca McDonagh, HSBC UK’s head of retail banking and wealth management, said: “The launch of voice and touch ID makes it even quicker and easier for customers to access their bank account, using the most secure form of password technology – the body.”
The hi-tech security approach is heavy on Apple tech …
The voice-recognition system being used is supplied by Nuance, the company who developed the technology used by Siri, and Touch ID is of course available only on iPhones and iPads. Apple also has lots of its own patents for voice authentication, one of them granted just this week.
Nuance Communications is supplying the voice biometrics technology, which works by cross-checking against over 100 unique identifiers including both behavioural features such as speed, cadence and pronunciation, and physical aspects including the shape of larynx, vocal tract and nasal passages.
The bank was quick to reassure customers that things that might affect their voice – like getting a cold – would not stop them logging-in.
“We will be able to cope with people who have got colds or slight impediments,” Joe Gordon, UK head of customer contact at HSBC, told the BBC. “Things such as the size of your mouth or your vocal tract don’t change. Neither do your cadence or your accent when you’ve got those little colds.”
A number of banks currently support Touch ID, while others use voice-recognition, but this is believed to be the first time a combination of the two can be used to completely bypass the need for conventional security credentials.
There’s no word yet on when the service might roll out beyond the UK, but I’ll be trying it out as soon as it’s available, and will report back on how well it works.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
They’re not replacing passwords+questions, you most likely will need to enter it first before Touch ID + Voice can be used. Touch ID cannot be enabled without a secret first.
Also, biometric is NOT most secure form of “password” technology. It is actually the worst form and it is not a password technology. They need to fire their entire security and marketing departments from doing this and confusing customers.
You cannot change your voice nor your fingerprints, so someone clones your voice/fingerprint and can access it all the time. That’s why passwords or changeable data is the most secure authentication process you can use. But you can use biometric as secondary and temporary authentication method on top of the passwords.
You’ll have to enter credentials once, sure, but not after that – as per existing apps accessed via Touch ID.
Maybe, just maybe, one of the biggest banks had checked this out? And might just know a little more than you?
Lay off the angry juice?
HSBC’s existing iOS app is very bad. It is a thin native wrapper around an html app. The experience is slow, inconsistent, does not ‘feel’ like an iOS app, and is utterly disappointing to me. But, contrary to the suggestion of this headline, you can already authenticate yourself in the app with TouchID. I am not sure what this voice-recognition feature is expected to add, but i have low expectations.
That’s an app? God that’s hideous.
Touch ID yes – -voice recognition is very bad… people just need a recording — plus, i dont want to have to speak into my phone just to gain access to my bank account… i would much rather use passwords etc than voice.
I have apps for 3 other banks that only require TouchID for basic access to view balances, etc…, and then require a password and/or pin for transfers or any kind of debit action. HSBC on the other hand has always had a horrible interface both in their app and online, this doesn’t look like an improvement at all, just another example of HSBC not “getting it”. Wonder how many of their thousands of Indian programmers it took to come up with this shit?