OCBC Bank announced today (March 18th) the integration of facial biometrics for its ATM services as it moves towards eliminating the need to carry an ATM card, which can be processed or stolen.
This makes it the first in Southeast Asia to allow face checks for ATM banking transactions. Prior to that, it was the first and only bank in Singapore to launch a QR code pick-up in July 2019.
The first transaction that can be executed by checking the faces at their ATMs are account balance inquiries.
The first will be presented at eight ATMs: OCBC Tampines Center One and Two, Taman Jurong Shopping Center, Great Eastern at Pickering Street, HDB Hub Level 1, 103 Yishun Ring Road, OCBC Campus and Geylang Road 7-Eleven.
According to the bank, account balance inquiries and cash withdrawals are the most commonly used ATM services, accounting for approximately 8 out of 10 all ATM transactions performed by its customers.
How it works
OCBC Bank was the first to touch Singapore’s national digital identity infrastructure, Singpass Face Verification, to securely verify customers for ATM banking transactions without the need for ATM cards.
To use face checking at an OCBC bank ATM, customers can select the ATM service they want before entering their NRIC number on the ATM screen.
They will then be asked to place the face in a frame on the screen, while a network-enabled camera scans their face and checks the scanned image in real time against a national biometric database.
OCBC Bank’s ATM network is digitally connected to a national biometric database containing images and identities of Singapore’s four million residents.
Once the face scan is confirmed, the customer can proceed with the transaction at the ATM.
This convenient approach to ATM banking services is a secure alternative to using physical ATM cards.
Face checking is built-in with anti-fraud security features, including liveliness detection technology that detects and blocks the use of photos, videos, or masks during the verification process.
It will be extended to other ATM transactions
Following the introduction of face verification for inquiries and cash withdrawals, it will be extended to other ATM transactions, including cash deposits, transfers of funds to other banks, top-ups with cash cards and credit card bills from next year.
Although OCBC Bank has recorded a significant increase in digital banking adoption among its customers, it claims that ATM usage is still high with more than two million cash withdrawals per month.
Sunny Quek, head of OCBC Bank for Consumer Financial Services in Singapore, is convinced that this service will become attractive among Singapore consumers because they are “eager digital adopters”.
“Cash withdrawals via QR code at ATMs increased by 88 percent compared to last year in 2020. Since many customers have already accepted the withdrawal of QR cash without the need to use ATMs, face checks will add a layer of benefits to more customers as they access our points of contact in banking, “he added.
Credit for featured images: OCBC Bank
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