HN Explorer

When will American banks begin to use BankID?

1 points by lanmannen ↗ HN
Been reading up on a system called BankID, implemented by Norwegian banks. It's a type of computer chip which contains a random number generator (RNG). They don't publicize the source code, but it bears some resemblance to gambling software.

You set your own PIN code, which must be typed in to retrieve the unique bank-code (changes each time). This may sound confusing at first, but the system is rather clever.

1. You first type in your social security at the bank's log in page. 2.It then asks for your PIN code on the "BankID chip", which in turn provides you with a RNG code. 3. You then finalize it by typing in a personal password on the log in screen.. And voilá.

They also changed it from an all-Java system, to a html5 infrastructure. Apparently it can also be installed on a cellphone.

I really love this device and wish my US bank could offer something similar, besides normal Google 2-FA. The best feature though is this...

Apparently people can also sign loan papers and official documents as if it was a legalized contract. How cool is that? No more paperwork.

We need something like this in the US.

What do you guys think?

Here's one of the sources I came across: https://www.secureidnews.com/news-item/norway-adding-mobile-digital-identity-function-to-its-bankid-program/

3 comments

[ 1.7 ms ] story [ 20.6 ms ] thread
parvenu74
I think the closest we have to this at the moment is Apple Pay -- and I presume Samsung/Google pay work the same way -- where the card number for a given transaction is changed every X number transactions.
lanmannen
So I haven't looked into Apple Pay and the specifics on how it works. What really strikes me as being gamechanger is the ability to sign legal contracts from your own laptop. I've never come across anything like this in the US, where I can accept a loan agreement or something similar from the comfort of my own home.

Maybe this is a business idea to think of for the future.

lanmannen
Upon further research, I see that the BankID is provided in two different forms. It seems there is a universal key which can be used to log into most websites, while there's also a private key which will be tied to one specific site. Here's another website with some more info on it:

https://www.xn--billigeforbruksln-orb.no