Security and Privacy: Guiding Principles for a Swiss FinTech Company
According to a 2013 survey from McAfee, the average technology user has about $35,000 worth of assets stored on digital devices. That’s not counting the value of all the assets dispersed across the cloud or the value of funds in financial accounts that are vulnerable to loss if a consumer’s login credentials are compromised. Add in the loss of social standing and sense of violation when private information becomes public knowledge, and it’s no wonder that issues like privacy and security keep some people up at night.
“No Cost” Storage Options Come at a Price
Free online storage platforms are fine for sharing and managing documents that contain no private information. But free services may come with strings attached. For example, data may be mined for the benefit of advertisers and other interested parties. In the words of Tobias Christen, CEO of digital security provider DSwiss, consumers are catching on to this fact.
“In Europe, at least, people are realizing that If you don’t pay for the product, you are the product. Your data is analyzed and sold.”
If that data has to do with a person’s preference in shoe styles, this is of little concern. When it comes to financial information, the stakes are higher.
Some data is simply too personal and important to risk in a non-secured environment. “That’s why we at DSwiss have built a digital vault. This is online storage for documents and passwords that’s so secure that only you can access it. It’s personalized encrypted. It has convenient features such as syncing files, mobile scanning, file sharing, data inheritance, and more.”
This company designed their SecureSafe solution as a virtual lockbox that can only be opened by the authorized user (with two-factor authentication) so that even employees and programmers at DSwiss can’t see what’s inside. Shielding privacy is a value that the Swiss have long been known for in the world economy. Now, this protection is being offered to every technology user who wants to stay in control of their digital assets. The typical SecureSafe user may use their vault to store everything from housing contracts and insurance policies to wedding pictures and other digital heirlooms that will be passed down to future generations.
How Financial Institutions Leverage This Virtual Lockbox
While this type of security is important for the average consumer, it’s even more critical for banks and other financial institutions that want to serve their customers with the highest level of privacy. In fact, this is what made SecureSafe such an attractive solution for institutions like Deutsche Bank that have integrated the vault concept into their customer service process. Tobias demoed the solution at a recent Finovate conference, showing how banks use a white labeled version of the DSwiss product to provide customers with a private platform to store their financial documents.
But can the bank see what customers have in their vaults? Not without specific permission. The customer can select if and when to share specific documents with their banker or financial advisor. Everything else is strictly off limits. *“Even the bank can’t look into it unless the customer approves that specific document.” *
The vault is integrated with a communication system that allows the bank to send documents to customers for review and signatures. Christen pointed out that this helps banks communicate more efficiently and reduces paper, which helps support their environmental stewardship objectives. Compliance is another tangible benefit for banks as regulations become more complex.
“The beauty of integrating customer-centric communication with the digital safe is that you fulfill GDPR principles like control of the customer and privacy by design.”
Housing communication within the secure environment of the digital vault is a big step up in security compared to transferring information via paper, flash drive, or email. For banks that know their reputation is at stake in the event of a data breach, DSwiss helps these institutions maintain a secure environment that makes them worthy of the faith customer place in them. “Things change, but one thing stays the same. You trust your bank to manage your digital assets.”
DSwiss Anticipating Rapid Growth with Help from Tech Partners
The benefits for banking institutions are obvious, and that’s one reason DSwiss is looking at aggressive growth in the coming years. Founded in 2008, the organization has earned its reputation for understanding and meeting the needs of financial sector clients. But the process of client acquisition can be fairly involved. The presale, sale, and implementation phases all require substantial, detailed communication to precisely meet the needs of each institution.
In keeping with its commitment to private and secure technology, DSwiss found a capable partner in Veeting, a WebRTC provider also located in Switzerland. With this fast, secure platform, the DSwiss sales team can serve clients more efficiently while maintaining the high touch and personalized service that the world’s most prestigious financial institutions expect.
And although the web meeting solution is feature-rich, the intuitive interface eliminates any confusion for new users. For a sales team focused on working effectively and getting things done on time, this was critical. According to Tobias,
“Simplicity was the most important. It had to be fast. You need to be able to get to screen sharing with one click.”
With architecture designed for ease of integration, Veeting was readily incorporated into the SecureSafe application itself. For example, attendees at a virtual meeting can receive the Veeting summary directly in their vault, keeping the topics under discussion private.
As the FinTech industry continues to gain steam, there will be many more opportunities for this type of strategic partnership. Those companies that remain open to integration without compromising their high standards for security and privacy will no doubt continue to rise to the top as preferred vendors for financial institutions.
