Five ID verification predictions for 2022

As we move through 2022 with the pandemic still ongoing, technologies designed to connect us will be more important than ever.

Five ID verification predictions for the year ahead

However, as many banks and technology firms enter their third calendar year serving customers remotely, they should not treat customer data with complacency. It’s time for businesses to thank customers for their loyalty by making their lives safer and simpler.

Here’s how we predict this shift will happen in 2022.

1. An artificial intelligence (AI) Bill of Rights will limit irresponsible data use

In 2022, an AI Bill of Rights will most likely be proposed by the US administration after it establishes its advisory commission on AI technologies.

Legislation that limits the non-consensual scope and impact of AI on consumers is badly needed. Similar to the EU’s GDPR, a bill focused on consumer protections won’t limit innovation in companies providing AI solutions. That is, so long as they obtain consumers’ consent to use their data.

However, it will act as a shield against businesses marketing or using that data without disclosing its purpose. We will need further regulations in the coming years as AI technologies continue to grow and become more sophisticated.

2. Contactless tech will do more than limit future pandemics

Over the last 12 months, contactless technology usage has hit an all-time high as businesses responded quickly to customer fears over COVID-19 and personal hygiene.

By introducing consumers to these technologies through touchless ATMs or QR code sign-in at hotels, for example, service providers showed the public how much more convenient they are. When customers don’t have to pull out their wallets or manually navigate through an interface, service becomes faster and easier. Most people won’t want to give that up even once the pandemic is over.

In 2022, we’ll see more airlines use touchless technologies, as well as new industries like concerts and sports arenas, public transportation, and retail stores. In addition to decreasing wait times, biometrics-based authentication also prevents ticket fraud, an issue that has been on the rise in recent years as more consumers are buying digital tickets.

3. Decentralised identity platforms will encourage new Big Tech competition

The race to establish the industry’s leading decentralised identity platform will be the catalyst for a new era of competition between the likes of Microsoft and Apple.

Apple’s approach to decentralised ID has been limited to customers within its own ecosystem, contributing to what some have called a “walled garden”. It also hasn’t made decentralisation a major selling point of its offerings.

Meanwhile, Microsoft made waves announcing its own decentralised system in 2021. In principle, this would allow a broader segment of businesses to use the service. 2022 will be the year competition really heats up to determine which approach and ecosystem customers choose for decentralised identity.

4. The financial sector continues to focus on the digital consumer

Consumer foot traffic in bank branches fell dramatically during the height of the pandemic. This trend made it easier for rival banking groups with a stronger digital focus to tempt customers away from branches.

As a result, banks poured an influx of funds into their digital strategies to add more value for digitally-minded consumers. Thanks to the success of those efforts last year, they will most likely continue to push for more mobile-first, customer-focused technologies in 2022.

These digital services will focus heavily on minimising friction to make apps faster and easier to access. Combining a focus on digital technologies with consumers’ longstanding trust in the banking industry will also provide opportunities for banks to explore newer and sometimes riskier services. These include decentralised finance, where consumer interest is growing.

5. The future of authentication is behavioural biometrics

Identity verification to strengthen online transaction security will thrive in 2022, thanks to the increasing popularity of biometrics-based AI technologies. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) recently surveyed airports that implemented biometrics systems in 2021 and found many consumers support common types of identity verification, such as fingerprint matching.

In the next year, we will hear more about behavioural biometrics and voice matching as these new methods enable people to conduct business and transactions online more securely.