• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Our Services
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Top Nav Social Icons

FindBiometrics

FindBiometrics

Global Identity Management

  • Biometrics
    • What are Biometrics?
    • FAQ
    • Biometric Associations
    • Companies
    • Premier Partners
  • News
    • Featured Articles
    • Interviews
    • Thought Leadership
    • Podcasts
    • Webinars
    • Year in Review
  • Applications
    • Biometric Security
    • Border Control and Airport Biometrics
    • Consumer and Residential Biometrics
    • Financial Biometrics
    • Fingerprint & Biometric Locks
    • Healthcare Biometrics
    • Justice and Law Enforcement Biometrics
    • Logical Access Control Biometrics
    • Mobile Biometrics
    • Other Biometric Applications
    • Physical Access Control Biometrics
    • Biometric Time and Attendance
  • Solutions
    • Behavioral Biometrics
    • Biometric Sensors and Detectors
    • Facial Recognition
    • Biometric Fingerprint Readers
    • Hand Readers & Finger Scanners
    • Iris Recognition
    • Biometric Middleware and Software
    • Multimodal Biometrics
    • Physiological Biometrics
    • Smart Cards
    • Vein Recognition
    • Voice and Speech Recognition
  • Stocks
  • Events
  • Companies
  • Podcasts

Russian Government Orders Banks to Hand Over Biometric Data

May 31, 2022

Russian Government Orders Banks to Hand Over Biometric Data

The Russian government is now demanding that state-owned banks provide their customers’ biometric data to the state’s Unified Biometric System.

According to new reports, the government directive went out in May, reaching VTB, Promsvyazbank, Rosselkhozbank, and Russian National Commercial Bank. The four banks were all asked to arrange meetings of their boards within ten days to determine how they could transfer their customers’ biometric data to the Unified Biometric System, a government platform accessible to law enforcement and intelligence services.

A separate directive is reportedly being drawn up for Sberbank, the country’s largest lender. Speaking to the daily newspaper Kommersant, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko indicated that the order is being drafted and will be subject to approval from the Russian government, though it is not yet clear why Sberbank is getting its own specialized government order, distinct from the directives sent to the other state-owned banks.

Part of the answer may have to do with Sberbank’s unique status as a biometrics pioneer in Russia’s financial services industry. As far back as 2017, the bank was exploring the possibilities of establishing a mulitmodal biometric authentication platform in partnership with VisionLabs; and last year, Sberbank worked with Visa and Russia’s X5 Retail Group to trial face-based payments at a number of coffee shops, Perekrestok supermarkets, and Pyaterochka convenience stores.

A subsidiary of MTS, Russia’s biggest mobile network operator, announced that it had established a deal to acquire VisionLabs at the end of last year through a transaction valued at 7 billion roubles – another sign of the growing value of biometric technology among Russia’s major corporations.

The unexpected financial services directive from the Russian government appears to have thrown bank managers off-guard, with one anonymous individual affiliated with a large bank telling Kommersant that his institution considers the order “almost impossible to implement” due to the issue of obtaining consent from customers. 

Privacy and human rights advocates have warned about the Russian government’s increasing use of biometric information before. As The Moscow Times reports, even back in February Human Rights Watch had said that the “lack of transparency and independent oversight around storage, access to, and security of biometric data in Russia are longstanding concerns,” adding, “There is also no transparency around the circumstances under which, for example, the Interior Ministry or Federal Security Service can access the data.”

The Unified Biometric System was established in 2018 and is managed by Rostelecom, a Russian telecommunications company, under the supervision of the Communications Ministry and the Central Bank.

Sources: Kommersant, The Moscow Times

—

May 31, 2022 – by Alex Perala

Related News

  • Manchester Police Try to Recruit Public for Surveillance SchemeManchester Police Try to Recruit Public for Surveillance Scheme
  • Ireland Looks to Expand Police Facial Recognition PowersIreland Looks to Expand Police Facial Recognition Powers
  • Israel Continues to Advance Controversial Police Surveillance BillIsrael Continues to Advance Controversial Police Surveillance Bill
  • Privacy Watchdog Raises Legal Concerns Over Serbia’s Facial Recognition GoalsPrivacy Watchdog Raises Legal Concerns Over Serbia’s Facial Recognition Goals
  • Pew Asked 10,000 Americans How They Feel About Police Use of Facial Recognition: Here’s What They SaidPew Asked 10,000 Americans How They Feel About Police Use of Facial Recognition: Here’s What They Said
  • Police and Privacy Activists Prepare for Surveillance Showdown in India’s CourtsPolice and Privacy Activists Prepare for Surveillance Showdown in India’s Courts

Filed Under: News Tagged With: banking biometrics, Biometric, biometric surveillance, biometrics, face biometrics, facial recognition, financial services biometrics, Human Rights Watch, law enforcement biometrics, privacy issues, Russian, Sberbank, VisionLabs

Primary Sidebar

EXCLUSIVE MEMBERS ONLY CONTENT:

Become a FindBiometrics Member and gain easy access to specialty content, including the ID Tech column, replays of virtual events, and Identity School educational checklists:

ID TECH: What Role Will Biometrics Play in the Cyber Cold War? We’re About to Find Out [NEW]

Identity School: Facial Recognition Cheat Sheet

REPLAY: Travel & Hospitality Virtual Identity Summit

Sponsored Links

TECH5 showcase logo

TECH5 is an international technology company founded by experts from the biometrics industry, which focuses on developing disruptive biometric and digital ID solutions through the application of AI and Machine Learning technologies.

TECH5 target markets include both Government and Private sectors with products powering Civil ID, Digital ID, as well as authentication solutions that deliver identity assurance for various use cases. 

Learn more: www.tech5.ai

Onfido logo

Onfido is building the new identity standard for the internet.Our AI-based technology assesses whether a user’s government-issued ID is genuine or fraudulent, and then compares it against their facial biometrics. That’s how we give companies like Revolut, Zipcar and Bitstamp the assurance they need to onboard customers remotely and securely. Our mission is to create a more open world, where identity is the key to access.. For more information, please visit www.onfido.com

ThreatMark brings trust to the digital world by providing cutting-edge fraud prevention solutions. Major banks use ThreatMark’s AI-powered technology and behavioral biometrics to build secured banking experience to precisely verify their legitimate users, seamlessly across all digital channels. All while securing the users’ most precious assets and keeping the fraudsters away. Learn more: www.threatmark.com/

With its secunet border gears product portfolio and specialised consulting expertise, secunet supports police forces and security authorities in their sovereign tasks. Whether ABC gates, self-service kiosks or biometric middleware – each component helps to strengthen identity protection and to accelerate verification – in mobile and stationary scenarios.

Mobile ID World Logo

Mobile ID World is here to bring you the latest in mobile authentication solutions and application providers. Our company is dedicated to providing users with the best content and cutting edge information on technology, news, and mobile solutions for your mobile identity management needs.

Recent Posts

  • Web3 Gets Its First Smartphone, Featuring Biometric Authentication
  • Vivo X80 Pro Stands Out With Extra-large In-display Sensor
  • Apple Seeks to Kill Both the Password and the CAPTCHA With New Authentication Solutions
  • American Airlines Looks to Selfie Biometrics for Passenger Processing
  • VAIO Installs Fingerprint Sensors in New FE Laptops

Biometric Associations

IBIA and fido

Tweets

Footer

  • About Us
  • Company Directory
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Archives
  • CCPA: Do not sell my personal info.

Follow Us

Copyright © 2022 FindBiometrics