Leading authentication provider, Entersekt, today announced that FirstBank has selected Entersekt’s multi-factor authentication product, Transakt, to supplement the security of its mobile banking application. Headquarted in Lakewood, Colorado, FirstBank is the largest locally-owned bank in the state with $15.6 billion in total assets. It also has a growing number of branches in Arizona and California.
FirstBank will integrate the Transakt Software Development Kit (SDK) into its mobile banking application to provide a seamless, one-touch authentication experience that is fully compliant with FFIEC and international regulatory guidance on out-of-band, multi-factor authentication. Instead of relying on inadequate device fingerprinting and antivirus technology, Transakt uses digital certificates and proprietary validation techniques to uniquely identify each enrolled mobile phone or tablet and convert it into a trusted second factor of authentication. Digital certificates are also used for transaction signing and to establish a trusted channel between the mobile device and bank over which mutually-validated authentication requests and responses travel.
User protection and ease of use are imperative to FirstBank, so it is important that the security Transakt provides comes at no cost to usability. FirstBank has elected to implement a fingerprint biometric feature through Transakt to enable a one-touch user experience. The authentication process avoids one-time passwords or challenge questions, involving a single touch in response to a pop-up verification request. Little to no user education is required.
“Our mobile app has been incredibly well-received by our customers since we launched it in 2014,” said Jim Reuter, chief operating officer at FirstBank. “Adding one-touch authentication will further enhance what is already one of the most progressive, easy-to-use mobile banking technologies on the market.”
“Consumer awareness of multi-factor authentication is rising fast as giants like Google and Facebook roll it out,” said Gerhard Oosthuizen, Entersekt’s chief information officer. “The security benefits are obvious to everyone, but users are justifiably wary of tired authentication technologies like one-time passwords that slow them down and do not necessarily provide the required protection, particularly on mobile. There’s an opportunity here for digital-savvier banks to take a lead over their competitors by engineering attractively low-friction mobile interactions that nevertheless inspire confidence and trust.”
Schalk Nolte, Entersekt’s chief executive officer, added, “The US market demands exceptional usability on the mobile channel, together with absolute peace of mind. We are extremely pleased to be working with FirstBank to further enhance its mobile app security while delivering a best-in-class user experience.”
Transakt is Entersekt’s flagship product and is available as an SDK or a stand-alone security app downloadable from all major app stores. Financial services companies worldwide use it to secure online banking, mobile banking, mobile money transfer, e-commerce, call center interactions, in-branch interactions, and more.
