Barclays announced it has partnered with Hitachi Europe to launch its customer authentication solution, Barclays Biometric Reader, which is backed by Hitachi’s Finger Vein Authentication Technology (VeinID).
The launch comes on the heels of Barclay’s roll out of voice biometric capabilities for its telephone banking customers.
By scanning the finger, customers can gain fast access to their online bank accounts and authorize payments without having to enter PIN, passwords or authentication codes. Barclays said it will begin offering the technology in 2015 to its Barclays Corporate Banking customers.
The device is able to accurately read and verify a person’s unique vein patterns in the finger, which will ultimately help protect UK businesses against identity fraud. Barclays said it will not store records of their customers’ vein patterns, either privately or publically.
A few banks are already using Hitachi’s VeinID for password replacement, single sign on and ATM machines in Japan, North America and Europe. The Barclays Biometric Reader, which couples vein biometric and highly secure digital signature technology, offers a first for the global financial sector, with the potential to expand the technology more widely in UK branch networks.
