How we’re using new technology to make account applications simple and safe.

More and more, technology is stepping in to streamline the admin that comes with setting up bank accounts and carrying out transactions. But as technology keeps moving forward, there are people out there taking advantage of a rise in online banking activity to steal identities and use them to make money. It’s in everybody’s interests to stop any criminal activity coming from identity theft and fraud. So, we’ve introduced a new way for customers to verify their identity using facial biometrics when opening a new account. It’s much easier and more secure than traditional methods. As well as speeding up the application process, it keeps criminals from taking over someone’s identity and setting up false accounts that put them at risk of losing money.

This technology does two important things to make opening an account with us much faster and easier. You won’t need to upload a copy any of your documents to share with us or visit a branch to open a new account. Plus, it saves you time filling in a form because much of the data we need for your account is captured by our identity capture process. You’ll be able to check and confirm that everything is correct before submitting your application. This gives every one of our customers an easy, secure way to set up their account, no matter where they live in Australia. And because we have a secure and trusted way to confirm that you’re a real person and you are who you say you are, we can authorise full access to your account from day one, instead of making you wait as a precaution while we run traditional ID checks.

Using this technology doesn’t mean we’re collecting extra data. It’s just an easier and more secure way of recording the information we need to open your account and confirm your identity. We store your digital data and a virtual copy of your ID in a secure server right here in Australia, and we share our privacy collection statement and policy with you so you’ll know exactly how we collect, use and store your data so we can provide you with our banking services.

We’ve chosen OCR Labs as our technology partner because they have a strong presence here in Australia and are leading the world in this type of technology. They’ve developed their solution as a way to protect the identity of people as we all get used to doing more things remotely in a digital world. This highly sophisticated technology detects thousands of fraudulent documents and applications every day which helps stop criminal transactions from happening.

OCR labs hold all the necessary certifications to work in this space as required by the digital identity framework. They meet the same standards of data security as Australia Post and the Australian Federal Government to work with us and our customers and be part of our technology and service offer.

For now, we’re using identity technology from OCR labs for opening new Beyond Bank savings and transaction accounts. We’re also working towards including this in our home loan application process to speed up applications and make banking even easier for more of our customers.

Find out how the app works and how you can use it to help you budget and save for your important goals.