The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has issued new guidelines to financial institutions to step up their preventive measures against online crimes.
According to BoT Governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, commercial banks have been instructed to require biometric verification for mobile banking transactions, such as facial or fingerprint scans, for customers wanting to transfer more than 50,000 baht through a mobile banking application.
The enhanced security measures are in response to an increase in technology crimes via fake short messages, call centers, and mobile applications. These scams have caused many people to lose their savings and confidence in digital banking services, which could potentially have a large-scale impact on the banking system in the long run.
To address the issue, the BoT has collaborated with agencies, such as the Thailand Banking Sector Computer Emergency Response Team, the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, and the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission in issuing a set of standard banking measures for all financial institutions to follow.
Under the new guidelines, the BoT governor said banks are advised to avoid sending SMSs with links to their customers. The “know-your-customer” verification must be stricter, and customers using mobile banking will have to verify their identities with biological measurements or physical characteristics through facial recognition or fingerprint scans. Each agency is required to develop a system to detect suspicious transactions with a “near real-time” capability to allow immediate cancellations of such transfers.
Sethaput added that every financial institution is also required to have a round-the-clock devoted hotline center for victims of online banking scams to quickly report their cases. (NNT)
