FIDO Alliance, DSCI to promote stronger authentication standards in India

The FIDO Alliance has partnered with the Data Security Council of India (DSCI) to launch the FIDO India Working Group in an effort to raise awareness of strong authentication standards and solutions in India.

According to the organization, it is crucial to implement “a secure, open, scalable and interoperable set of mechanisms” to decrease the industry’s reliance on passwords while also protecting user privacy.

These concepts enable secure authentication practices in finance and other industries, both within and outside the enterprise.

“India is ahead of the curve on authentication in many respects – the Reserve Bank of India, for example, mandates that online transactions above a certain threshold use two-factor authentication,” said Brett McDowell, executive director of the FIDO Alliance. “The launch of the FIDO India Working Group and the partnership with DSCI extends the FIDO Alliance’s global reach and will enable us to educate the Indian market on how FIDO authentication can help service providers meet such mandates, while vastly improving security and usability of strong authentication over solutions like one-time passcodes and digital certificates.”

The FIDO India Working Group will be led by co-chairs Ramesh Kesanupalli, co-founder of the FIDO Alliance and founder of Nok Nok Labs, and Ashok Chandak, senior director of global sales and marketing at NXP Semiconductors.

At launch, the FIDO India Working Group will comprise of 11 FIDO Alliance member companies that are active in the Indian market, including Digit Secure, Feitian, FingerPrint Cards, Hypersecu, Intel Corporation, Nok Nok Labs, NXP Semiconductors, Persistent Systems, Redpine, Synaptics and Uniken, Inc.

FIDO authentication decreases organizations’ and users’ reliance on passwords with interoperable on-device authentication that is stronger and easier to use.

The organization initiates regional working groups to help its members to understand and bring awareness to how FIDO standards can help fulfill in-market requirements.

“With the proliferation of digital and mobile banking, secure and foolproof authentication is a key to reassuring consumers and building trust,” Rama Vedashree, CEO of DSCI, said. “We look forward to working with FIDO and its members in spreading awareness of stronger authentication standards.”

Previously reported, the FIDO Alliance made recommendations for a strong authentication requirement in the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) draft updates to its Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity guidelines.

Article Topics

authentication  |  biometrics  |  FIDO Alliance  |  India  |  standards