Bank of America has announced a number of improvements to its digital banking services. With fingerprint-based biometric login and the introduction of an Apple Watch app, the upgrades have a strong mobile focus.
The Bank of America mobile app now supports Touch ID login, leveraging the biometric authentication of Apple’s pioneering mobile fingerprint scanning system. This complements last week’s news that Bank of America was supporting fingerprint login for Android devices; both login systems adhere to FIDO standards, the bank says.
Meanwhile, the Apple Watch app lets users check balances and transaction histories, and to receive real-time notifications. It isn’t yet clear if a similar app is in development for Samsung’s Gear S2 smartwatch or other Android Wear wearables, but it’s tempting to speculate on such a development, especially if smartwatches start to catch on in the mass market.
Finally, in addition to improvements to its appointment-booking features, Bank of America rounds out its list of upgrades with the launch of a Security Center allowing users to customize security settings for their mobile and online banking services, for example by setting up a one-time-password SMS system for each login event. For many, the rollout of enhanced security features along with new mobile capabilities will be a welcome approach – one that may become standard as users and financial services providers alike become more aware of new digital threats following the rise of mobile and online banking.
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