Palm vein patterns differ by individual, allowing the scanner to correctly identify the customer. (image: KB Kookmin Bank)
SEOUL, Apr. 15 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean lender KB Kookmin Bank has introduced a new service that allows customers to make withdrawals through hand recognition, instead of having to use a bankbook, stamp or password.
The bank announced on Sunday that customers will now be able to make withdrawals at the counter using palm vein pattern recognition.
Simply placing one’s hand on a recognition device installed at the counter will allyow access to one’s accounts, reducing the time spent on transactions.
Palm vein patterns differ by individual, allowing the scanner to correctly identify the customer.
The bank explained that palm vein recognition is safer and more precise than other biometric identification methods such as fingerprint or iris recognition.
Similar palm vein scanners are already being used at automated teller machines (ATM) from major banks worldwide, including Barclays in the U.K. and Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank in Japan.
To prevent biometric information from leaking, the bank will encrypt the vein pattern database and work with the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute to store the information.
The data will be disassembled into multiple blocks when stored, and reassembled when used for transactions.
KB Kookmin Bank expects that the new service will particularly benefit senior customers who often have a hard time remembering passwords.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
