Making electronic payments online is about to become more secure in Ireland

A new directive in Ireland and Europe is set to come into effect in the coming weeks, making it more secure to make electronic payments online.

The second Payment Services Directive (PSD2) will make it more secure to make electronic payments when shopping online or using online banking services.

The European law will come into full force from September 14th.

While some elements of the new legislation were applied in January 2018, the full rollout from September will result in changes to how customers use digital payments channels and shop online by introducing added security rules, known as Strong Customer Authentication (SCA).

Each bank will communicate directly with their customers to explain how SCA will work for their accounts.

Once implemented, the legislation will also allow for the secure provision of new services by Third Party Providers (TPPs), also referred to as Open Banking.

Speaking at the start of an awareness campaign being run by the Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland (BPFI) to highlight the upcoming changes, Gill Murphy, Head of Payment Schemes, BPFI said: “It is vital that consumers take the time to carefully read the information provided by their bank in relation to PSD2. 

This information will outline what changes customers can expect as well as any actions that they may need to take in order to ensure continued access to their online accounts without interruption. 

It is important to remember that these changes are being introduced across Europe to help counter fraud and provide better protection for consumers and their online accounts.”

Read More: Meet the Irish woman breaking down barriers in technology education

What is SCA?

According to the Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland the principle of SCA is “to increase security for electronic payments through the introduction of two factor authentication protocols.”

This is a security process in which you may be asked to verify your identity in two different ways such as with a password or a fingerprint.

“SCA will be used when accessing online payment accounts or shopping online. Customer authentication is in use today however with PSD2 it is likely to be used more frequently to provide enhanced security.”

Read More: A quiet revolution is taking place In Tramore, Co. Waterford

What is Open Banking?

Open Banking allows customers to use the services of regulated Third Party Providers to provide  Payment Initiation Services as well as Account Information Services.

The Banking & Payments Federation of Ireland says this will give more control to customers.

This article was submitted to the IrishCentral contributors network by a member of the global Irish community. To become an IrishCentral contributor click here.