Tailor-Made project/CLIENT CASE
NS ALLIANCE, Authentication at your fingertips In partnership with EBRC, NS Alliance has developed a revolutionary authentication solution based on the biometric data of each individual. Among other things, it allows users to initiate payment transactions with just their fingerprint, while their phone stays in their pocket. This allows for simpler and faster transactions while guaranteeing a high level of security in retail, banking and even online operations. The solution is being progressively deployed internationally.
The players who stand out will be those who manage to propose a user experience of higher quality than what their competitors offer. A considerable number of businesses, therefore, strive to reduce the friction that can occur at the heart of a commercial relationship. How can you facilitate the checkout process without forcing the client to look for money or his payment card? How can you enable a secure online transaction without forcing the user to take out his token?
Pay without the need to search for your means of payment In the context of a project initiated within the framework of the e-commerce center for excellence in the Lille region in France, a group of actors has been working since 2006 on the development of simple, secure and easy-to-use solutions to simplify transactions. “We quickly realised we wanted to develop a solution that would allow us to carry out commercial transactions without the need to take out any means of payment, explains Cédric Hozanne, CEO of NS Alliance. The idea behind it was to end up with a simple process, like the handshake that allows us to seal a deal, without sacrificing the increasingly important high level of security.” Natural Security was born at the end of 2008 out of the merger between retail, banking and industry players, with the ambition to develop an innovative authentication solution to facilitate transactions in a few years. It was able to count on the support of its members,
which include BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, Safran Morpho, Oney Bank, Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, Carrefour Banque, Ingenico, Leroy Merlin and Groupe Auchan, to name only a few.
Biometrics and communication technology “We have combined the potential of biometrics with the opportunities offered by mid-range telecommunications technologies, adds the CEO. With our solution, paying is now as simple as putting your finger on a biometric authentication terminal.” The use of biometrics, the most personal data available to an individual, requires strict precautions. Within the framework of the protection of personal data (GDPR), NS Alliance has developed an innovative system allowing it to authenticate users without maintaining a central register of all of their biometric data. The centralised management of such data would be too risky. “We have developed an extremely secure mobile application through which each user records and retains his own data”, Cédric Hozanne explains.
Passing through the cash register with your finger, while the smartphone stays in your pocket
Cédric Hozanne, CEO, NS Alliance
“Paying is now as simple as putting your finger on a biometric authentication terminal.”
“The user has his biometric data with him, encrypted in our application, which is stored on his smartphone. We do not have access to that data. Our solution allows us to authenticate people we do not know.
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