As Bad Actors Fly Without Perching, Smile ID Looks To Shoot Without Missing
Fraud is evolving at breakneck speed, and Africa’s financial institutions are feeling the brunt. The surge in fraudulent activities is staggering—Nigeria’s banking sector alone lost NGN 42.6 B (~USD 27 M) to fraud in just three months of 2024. South Africa’s digital banking industry reported a 45% increase in fraud cases last year, while a leading bank in Kenya suffered a USD 2.1 M debit card fraud incident.
In this high-stakes game, biometric authentication is emerging as a formidable shield. And, Smile ID, a prominent biometric and identity verification services provider, is positioning itself at the forefront with its new technology.
The company has now introduced its Enhanced SmartSelfie™ as a strategic weapon in the battle against fraud. Unlike traditional liveness detection, which static images or pre-recorded videos can fool, this proprietary solution employs dynamic liveness challenges. Users are required to perform random facial actions, like turning their heads or making specific gestures, ensuring fraudsters armed with deepfakes, 3D masks, or other sophisticated tools are stopped in their tracks.
The stakes are high, and so are the standards. Enhanced SmartSelfie™ has achieved key industry certifications—standards that tests systems against the most advanced spoofing attempts. Notably, the company claims its new solution recorded a 0% penetration rate. “Fraudsters constantly adapt, and so do we,” said Mark Straub, CEO of Smile ID. His assertion captures the essence of a company determined to stay ahead in this escalating arms race.
Biometric authentication has emerged as one of the most effective defences against fraud. Smile ID recorded a 700% increase in biometric authentication requests between January and December 2024. In its comprehensive 2024 Nigeria eKYC report released in November, SmileID says it doubled its count from 100 million verifications recorded in its first seven years to 200 million verifications in the following 11 months, counting notable companies like Flutterwave and Paga among clients.
This latest innovation is not a standalone feature. Enhanced SmartSelfie™ integrates seamlessly across Smile ID’s suite of biometric authentication tools, including Biometric KYC, Document Verification, and SmartSelfie™ Authentication. For businesses operating in high-risk sectors like banking, remittance, and digital payments, this capability could mean the difference between securing trust and falling victim to catastrophic losses.
The need for such advanced technology is underscored by the alarming rise in fraud across the continent. The Financial Institutions Training Centre’s report on Nigerian fraud losses in Q2 2024 reveals a problem spiralling out of control. These quarterly losses already surpass the total fraud reported in 2023. Similarly, South Africa’s 47% increase in financial losses due to fraud in 2023 highlights how traditional security measures are failing to keep pace.
Smile ID’s edge lies not just in its technology but also in its deep understanding of the African market. By optimising its solutions for low-bandwidth conditions and budget-friendly Android devices—the most common technological constraints in the region—the company ensures its tools are accessible and effective for businesses of all sizes.
The broader context, however, is not just about technology but also adoption. Between January and December 2024, Smile ID recorded a staggering increase in biometric authentication requests. This surge reflects a growing acknowledgement across industries that sophisticated, scalable, and user-friendly solutions are essential in today’s high-risk digital landscape.
Featured Image Credits: Digital Banker Africa
