In a comprehensive assessment by Liminal, the Market Intelligence Firm, Keyless has been acknowledged as a leading innovator in the customer authentication sector. The 2024 Link™ Index for Customer Authentication shines a spotlight on Keyless among the top 15 vendors in a field that includes more than 50 companies across various industries.

The report begins by reflecting the ongoing market shift. Customer authentication technologies are pivoting away from traditional, knowledge-based methods like passwords towards more advanced, user-friendly solutions. The most popular solutions are both flexible and scalable, and can blend seamlessly into existing security stacks and broader digital platforms.

The Liminal report notes that nearly 90% of surveyed businesses are interested in moving away from password-based authentication. Despite the enthusiasm, the transition is tempered by technical and educational barriers, with only a third likely to adopt these systems in the near future.

Keyless’ solution segments highlighted in the Link Index Report.

Liminal notes that Keyless sets itself apart with its privacy-preserving biometric authentication solutions. The Link™ report explains how our flagship technology does not store biometric data, either locally or in the cloud, using advanced cryptography to authenticate user identities securely. This method not only enhances user privacy but helps businesses comply with stringent global regulations.

In the report, our Consumer Authentication solution is praised for its flexible multi-factor authentication (MFA) options and seamless Single Sign-On (SSO) integration, supported by strong API access. This flexibility allows for a highly adaptable authentication environment that easily integrates with existing business systems and Identity Verification (IDV) partners, facilitating efficient step-up authentication processes.

Our customers have expressed high satisfaction with the compatibility of Keyless’ platform across various device types, praising the intuitive nature of our dashboard and reporting mechanisms, and our ability to prevent ATOs. They appreciate how the authentication process mirrors the simplicity and speed of using Face ID on smartphones, with each authentication flow completed in about 300 milliseconds.

A typical passwordless login flow with Keyless

The adoption of customer authentication solutions like those provided by Keyless has led to significant operational benefits. These include a 

 in account recoveries using call centers and a 

 in related labor expenses. Moreover, businesses have noted a 

 in successful phishing attacks, thereby boosting the lifetime value of each customer and enhancing overall security.

Despite being a relatively newer player with a small team when compared to other Leaders such as Google, Okta, and Twilio, Keyless has established a strong market presence, particularly in Europe. The report notes that our strategic partnerships and focus on product development have facilitated steady growth and near-term plans include the continuing expansion of our market presence to North America, aiming to become a globally recognized name in customer authentication.

Keyless continues to lead the charge towards a safer, more private world. Our unique, privacy-preserving approach to biometrics are setting benchmarks in the industry and prove that advanced security and a better user experience can go hand in hand.

Report Summary: Keyless Shines in Liminal’s 2024 Market Overview on Customer Authentication

Keyless has been highlighted among the top ATO prevention vendors in the 

2024 Market and Buyer's Guide for Account Takeover Prevention in Banking

, authored by Digital Identity Strategy Firm Liminal. This report recognizes Keyless alongside industry leaders like Akamai Technologies, Feedzai, Fortinet, IBM, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, and Palo Alto Networks, each playing a pivotal role in fortifying the banking sector against the rising tide of account takeover incidents.

Phishing is the most significant ATO threat vector

, accounting for 26.7% of all account takeovers and standing as the most common method attackers use to access user accounts.

External Vendor Reliance: Despite the potential for in-house development, banks continue to prefer outsourcing ATO prevention solutions. 

Only 20% of fraud teams have plans to develop solutions internally

, with half not expecting to undertake these developments for at least two years.

: Out of a wide range of authentication methods surveyed, including app-based authentication, data breach monitoring, SMS OTPs, Behavioral Biometrics, Risk Scoring, and Bot Detection, an overwhelming 

88% of survey participants strongly prefer biometric authentication

, marking it as a critical capability for combating account takeovers.

Market Analysis, Vendor Profiles, and Emerging Trends

Liminal's 2024 guide offers an in-depth analysis of current market dynamics in account takeover prevention, featuring detailed profiles of leading vendors including their strategic approaches to mitigating ATO risks. The report highlights the complexities of phishing attacks, mobile security vulnerabilities, and the regulatory landscapes affecting global markets. Additionally, it identifies emerging trends in the cybersecurity landscape, stressing the escalation of cyberattacks and the critical need for advanced digital defenses. The guide emphasizes the importance of adopting sophisticated security measures like continuous authentication and biometrics to combat these evolving threats effectively.

Highlighting Advanced Security Innovations

Liminal's 2024 guide on Account Takeover Prevention in Banking accentuates the critical role of innovative technologies in safeguarding against unauthorized access. Keyless distinguishes itself by implementing several advanced methods:

As the digital banking ecosystem continues to expand and evolve, so too does the landscape of security threats. 

Liminal’s 2024 Market and Buyer's Guide

 not only charts the current state of account takeover prevention but also projects future developments in the field. It is an indispensable resource for those committed to staying ahead of potential security threats in an increasingly digital world.

We encourage banking professionals and cybersecurity experts to read the full report to better understand how Keyless, together with other leaders in the field, are innovating and shaping the future of banking security.

Keyless Featured in Liminal Research Report on ATO Prevention in Banking

We are thrilled to announce that Keyless has been highlighted as a Luminary in decentralized biometric solutions in the 

2024 Biometric Digital Identity Financial Services Prism Report

, published by Acuity Market Intelligence under The Prism Project. This recognition underscores our growing role in advancing the field of biometric authentication within the financial services sector.

The Decentralized Model and ZKB Technology

Keyless is celebrated for its pioneering privacy-preserving technology within the financial services industry. Part of the emerging decentralized authentication category of biometrics (

 (ZKB) technology is at the core of our solutions, ensuring that no biometric data is stored anywhere - neither on the device or in the cloud - a unique achievement. This approach not only enhances user privacy but also ensures compliance with stringent regulations such as GDPR and PSD2.

Our approach to the decentralized model involves using a groundbreaking technique known as 

 (sMPC) which combines the benefits of the two existing methods - local and centralized biometrics. This method processes biometric data on the device, similar to local biometrics, but then transforms and stores it in the cloud, not as biometric data but in a format that doesn’t legally constitute ‘biometric’ data. This ensures that neither Keyless nor any cloud provider can access or decrypt the actual biometric data, combining privacy with cloud scalability and accessibility.

Case Study: Transforming Financial Services

The report highlights a case study in which Keyless has helped a national bank managing billions in assets and serving hundreds of thousands of customers address the inefficiencies and security risks associated with traditional SMS OTPs and customer support.

By implementing our biometric technology, the bank was able to significantly reduce its dependency on call center support through self-service biometric account recovery features, allowing users to independently recover their accounts with just a glance. Additionally, the improved user experience led to minimized disruptions and heightened transaction success rates, ultimately boosting customer satisfaction.

For high-risk transactions, the bank employed step-up authentication using facial biometrics, which not only eliminated the reliance on SMS OTPs but also significantly enhanced security. This shift resulted in a substantial decrease in annual password and account management costs, heightened protection against phishing and SIM swapping attacks, and notably, a decrease in account takeover fraud. 

Following on from our feature in their inaugural 

, Acuity Market Intelligence’s acknowledgement in their latest Prism Project report highlights our commitment to privacy-centered biometrics that do not compromise on the user experience. We are always striving to push the boundaries of industry, driving forward the implementation of the most innovative technologies for the financial services sector.

Keyless Recognized as Luminary in 2024 Prism Project Report on Biometric Digital Identity for Financial Services

 hosted by Darius Montvila, Sales Director North America and Paolo Gasti, Associate Professor at NYIT and our CTO, explored the growing challenge of deepfakes and their implications for identity verification in the digital age. The session delved into the evolution of deepfakes, the threats they pose, and innovative solutions to counter these threats.

The AI Evolution and the Beginnings of Deepfakes

The webinar kicked off with a historical overview of AI and deepfakes. Darius highlighted that the exploration of AI for image manipulation dates back to the 1990s, with a significant milestone in 2014 when Ian Goodfellow introduced Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs). Paolo provided insights into how GANs work, explaining that they involve two neural networks – a generator and a discriminator – that work in tandem to create increasingly realistic images.

In 2017, the term "deepfake" was coined on a subreddit dedicated to videos using face-swapping technology. Today, deepfakes have evolved from crude manipulations to hyper-realistic content, raising concerns about extortion, blackmail, misinformation, and political subversion. The dual-edged nature of deepfakes was emphasized, with their potential for both creative and malicious applications.

Darius discussed several high-profile deepfake incidents, including a fake Biden robocall urging New Hampshire Democrats to stay home, a Hong Kong company worker losing £20 million in a deepfake video call scam, and the CEO of WPP, the world's largest advertising firm, being targeted. These examples underscore the growing sophistication of deepfake attacks and their potential impact.

The webinar then shifted to the specific threats deepfakes pose to identity verification. Paolo explained presentation attacks and injection attacks, where fake images or videos are used to spoof identity verification processes. One notable example mentioned was using a deepfake of Elon Musk to bypass security checks.

Liveness detection emerged as a critical defense against deepfakes. Paolo differentiated between traditional detection methods and the more advanced passive liveness detection used by Keyless. Passive liveness detection identifies subtle indicators such as skin color variations, textural patterns, light reflections, and unique traits in the periocular region. These indicators help distinguish between live individuals and static images or videos.

Keyless employs a multi-layered defense strategy against deepfake threats, as recommended by Gartner. Darius emphasized Keyless' commitment to privacy-preserving, multi-factor authentication, leveraging passive liveness detection. This approach ensures robust authentication while maintaining user privacy.

The aim of the Deepfake Dilemma webinar was to provide valuable insights into the origins, risks, and countermeasures associated with deepfakes. If you didn't get a chance to watch the webinar live, you can access the webinar recording 

Keyless Webinar Recap: The Deepfake Dilemma

We are delighted to share findings from Gartner’s recent 

Innovation Insight on Biometric Authentication

, published in December 2023, which examines the innovative landscape of biometric authentication technologies. This report underscores the critical role that Keyless and other decentralized biometrics vendors play in identity and access management frameworks.

How Keyless fits into the decentralized model

A central principle of decentralized systems is non-collusion, ensuring that parties involved in authentication act independently without sharing unnecessary information. No single party should be able to access a complete biometric template or any authentication samples, whether in use, stored, or during transit.

Keyless’ flagship Zero-Knowledge Biometrics™ (ZKB) technology uses the cryptographic technique known as secure Multi-Party Computation (sMPC) to split biometric data between our backend and the user’s device, which ensures no data is stored system-wide and prevents us from testing whether an image matches user profiles.

Comparison with traditional biometric authentication approaches

The Gartner report compares Keyless’ approach to local and centralized biometrics, highlighting that the decentralized model has the most well-rounded approach as it combines the benefits of both local and centralized biometrics.

Keyless: Privacy-Preserving Decentralized Biometrics

Gartner's endorsement of decentralized biometric techniques underscores the significance of these methods in identity and access management strategies, validating Keyless's strategic vision. Keyless goes beyond typical decentralized biometric storage by ensuring that no biometric data is stored at all, setting us apart from other vendors. Our commitment to privacy-preserving authentication that combines the benefits of existing systems without compromising on user privacy not only aligns with current technological trends but also sets a new standard for the future of digital identity protection.

We encourage industry leaders to delve into the 

 to better understand the technological advancements and strategic recommendations that will define the future of biometric authentication. For a more comprehensive overview, you are welcome to download the full report from our website or contact us directly for more information on how Keyless is leading the charge in secure, decentralized biometric authentication.

Gartner Names Keyless as a Leading Decentralized Biometrics Vendor in Latest Report

Welcome to the fourth and final installment of our "Smile for AI" series. In this edition, we’ll take a high-level overview of the challenges facing the facial biometrics industry. As the technology carves its niche in sectors from banking and fintech to healthcare and hospitality, it's crucial to understand its headwinds below.

The Legal Landscape: Navigating BIPA and Beyond

One of the most pressing challenges for facial biometrics is heightened litigation, demonstrated by the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) mentioned in our second Smile for AI blog. With BIPA lawsuit settlements exceeding $900M in 2023, the legal risks associated with facial biometrics have become more pronounced. This surge in litigation not only brings to light the potential financial implications but also raises questions about user consent and data privacy. Such concerns may prompt private sector platforms to reconsider or slow down the adoption of facial biometrics technology.

The Regulatory Maze: Compliance in a Global Context

As facial biometrics become more prevalent, regulatory compliance is turning into a complex puzzle. Whether geography (GDPR, CCPA) or industry-specific (PSD2 SCA, HIPAA), new legislation is emerging across the globe, increasing the regulatory burdens on the capture, use, and storage of biometric data. The challenge here is not just legal but operational, requiring vendors to continuously update their technologies and policies.

AI-Generated Threats: The Deepfake Challenge

Perhaps one of the most technologically challenging headwinds is the rise of AI-generated threats, notably deepfake technology. Stable diffusion and generative AI are rapidly changing the landscape of authentication methods that, until recently, were considered secure against fraud. 

While fake verification photos have long been available on the dark web, the advent of these technologies represents a significant shift. Now, verification and ID pictures can be customized and generated in bulk with ease, presenting new challenges in ensuring the integrity of facial biometric platforms. In response, vendors and users must invest in advanced countermeasures, such as liveness detection and anti-spoofing technology, to maintain the reliability and security of their biometric systems.

The journey of facial biometrics is one marked by incredible potential and significant challenges. As the industry navigates these winds of change, the balance between innovation, privacy, and security becomes ever more critical. The future success of facial biometrics will largely depend on how effectively the industry can adapt to legal and regulatory changes, counter technological threats, and maintain public trust.

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