The transport sector is evolving since the invention of wheels. From horse carts to airplanes, this industry has transformed drastically. The transport industry is providing services at both public and enterprise levels.
Challenges for Transport Industry
Same as other businesses, the transport industry is also facing challenges. The primary one is to remain compliant with the advanced automated procedures. Now customers do not want to have multiple visits to the travel agency office for tour planning. They can arrange their whole trip through their mobile phone.
They can watch videos and pictures of hotels, resorts, and tourist spots. This helps them in better decision-making. As the transport industry is adopting more online business procedures the risk of cybersecurity also increases. Although it has adopted identity verification services, the risk of online data breaches is still there.
Below are some of the challenges faced by the transport industry:
Digital Transformation
Many businesses in the transport industry are still using traditional processes. They need to revisit their business processes and service providing practices, upgrade them according to modern technologies. At this time, digital transformation can skyrocket the growth speed of businesses.
Cybersecurity
As the digital transformation has taken transportation to another level, it also opens doors for cyberattacks. In 2017 german train operators were affected by a global cyberattack. Before that, no one thought that the travel industry was also vulnerable to cyberattacks. The hackers demand $300 to $600 for data recovery of each record.
One of the major issues related to cybersecurity is Digital Identity Theft.
Identity Frauds in Transport Industry
With no exception, identity theft is a deceptive type of crime for every industry. Financial institutions, e-commerce, and the health industry are the foremost targets of identity theft. Insurance Information Institute report shows that 650,572 identity theft-related complaints were logged by users in 2019.
It is a type of cybercrime where criminals steal legitimate user personal data. Then they use that information to open online accounts. Usually, those accounts are on banking channels, the motive is to transfer or steal funds. Another type of cybercrime is account takeover, in which the accounts of online users are accessed. This is done by knowing accounts’ credentials through social engineering tactics. Then the stolen accounts are used for fraud or money laundering. As the transport industry is not using solid identity verification services, the risk of identity fraud enhances.
Fraudsters use fake or stolen accounts to book flight tickets or hotel rooms. By doing so they enjoy the hospitality services without paying a single penny. If the booking is done through the stolen account, the genuine user will have to pay the bill. On the other hand, if fake accounts are used the business will suffer the loss. In both cases, the business will be responsible for the frauds. Because it is the business’s duty to screen and verify customer’s data.
So what is the solution for the above obstacles, the answer is Online Identity Verification.
Identity Verification
It is done while the customer onboarding process, every customer is identified and verified against government-issued id documents. The business can trust government documents because any legitimate government authority issues documents after complete personal verification. Here is the process how the process of verification of identity is done:
Customer Identification
The customer gives his bio-data at this step. Normally, there is an online form for it where the customer fills-in the data. The personally identifiable information is utilized to identify customers.
Information Verification
The above-entered information is verified in this step. The customer uploads the picture of himself holding an identity document like id card, passport, or driving license. The data is extracted by ocr from the image. The information given by the customer is confirmed with the extracted data along with the face verification.
Summing it Up
Identity verification solutions are no more a new service. About all the large and finance involving businesses are using identity verification services also known as know your customer verification. These services filter legitimate customers and fraudsters during onboarding. The high is the number of legitimate customers, the lesser will be chances of identity fraud and data breaches. The problem starts when a frustrated enter the system as a legitimate customer. Identity verification ensures the involvement of authentic users only. This will enhance the customer satisfaction level and streamline the transport business process.
