US bank, Wachovia, is using software from RSA Security to centralize the administration of its digital certificate program and verify the identity of bank employees that access customer data over networks. Using RSA Security’s Keon software will enable Wachovia to reassure its customers that only certified employees can access their data when it is stored within the bank’s applications or on its servers. When necessary, Wachovia can distribute digital certificates in-house to create digital signatures for customers’ electronic contracts and orders, while quickly updating or altering certificates without any external costs.

For any bank that offers online banking or eCommerce services, reliable customer authentication is imperative as a way to verify the identity of new customers while detecting or reducing the risk of identity theft. To maximize interoperability across a bank’s services, authentication processes must be consistent with the institution’s Internet strategy, and the authentication method should reflect any discernible risks in a particular application. In this context, Wachovia could feasibly extend its digital certification services to enable its online customers to authenticate themselves when logging on to its Internet services.

Any online authentication tool used by a bank should be interoperable across the enterprise, be accepted by customers, perform reliably and scale for future growth, according to industry insiders. In short, the onus is on financial institutions to manage any perceived risk to the data held on their systems, given the potentially risk when banks accept new customers via the Internet or electronic channels. During account origination, for instance, banks can reduce the risk of ID theft, account takeover and bogus transactions by using an appropriate authentication technology that is compatible with the estimated degree of risk.