Payment system platform gains support of Australia’s major banks for national digital ID

Eftpos’ ConnectID has received support from Australia’s ‘big four’ banks: ANZ, CBA, NAB and Westpac.

The news comes from Australian Payments Plus’ (AP+), the broker for digital identity initiatives of BPay and eftpos, who made the announcement on LinkedIn last week.

“This is a major milestone for the Australian industry’s adoption of digital identity, aiming to securely and simply deliver a seamless online identity verification experience to solve real-world issues,” comments AP+ CEO Lynn Kraus.

“We are excited that AP+ can deliver innovation, security, and convenience to the daily lives of Australian consumers and businesses through the creation of a national digital identity ecosystem with ConnectID.”

Echoing Kraus’s point, NAB chief of digital, data and analytics Angela Mentis says the bank is proud to play an important role in bringing digital ID to the Australian market.

“NAB’s priority in helping bring digital identity to life has been to empower customers with a choice — to verify their identity how and when they want, whilst ensuring privacy and personal data is protected,” Mentis says.

“We think that digital identity will be the most crucial enabler of safe and secure interactions in our future economy, and are certain that customers can have trust in this solution.”

Further, Mentis said using a digital identity will also aid customers in protecting themselves from cybercrime.

“In online transactions, it will essentially be easier to establish that the person you’re dealing with is who they say they are, which greatly minimizes the chances of falling victim to online fraud.”

For context, before the establishment of AP+, eftpos and BPay, (now part of the merged entity) were separate companies exploring digital ID applications. ConnectID was created by eftpos and accredited under the Australian government’s trusted digital identity framework (TDIF) in September last year.

“Australians trust the security and reliability of their banks and payments providers; for that reason developing a robust, standards-based digital identity ecosystem that can be used by major banks and trusted Australian organizations is a natural extension for AP+,” explains Andrew Black, managing director at ConnectID AP+.

“ConnectID is committed to helping Australian banks, businesses, and local retailers protect the sovereignty and security of Australian payments and identity data.”

The company is reportedly planning to start customer trials in late 2022, with all Australians scheduled to have access from mid-2023.

ConnectID is not the only company accredited under the TDIF. Competitors in verifying citizens’ digital identities in Australia include Mastercard and Australia Post.

Article Topics

Australia  |  biometrics  |  data protection  |  digital identity  |  Eftpos  |  fraud prevention  |  identity verification  |  secure transactions