Physical Tokens for Less Technologically Savvy Users to Access Mobile and Digital Banking Services

1 Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Prime Minister whether banks should be required to continue issuing physical tokens to access mobile and digital banking services for those who prefer that method of access, particularly those less technologically savvy or do not have the means to purchase the later models of phones which have the necessary operating systems to allow digital tokens.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam (for the Prime Minister): The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) requires banks to implement multi-factor authentication to verify customer identity and authorise online transactions. MAS does not prescribe any particular technology for multi-factor authentication, so that banks can offer the authentication method that best meets their customers' preferences.

Authentication mechanisms that banks offer include hardware tokens, digital tokens, and biometrics. Banks which have replaced hardware tokens with digital tokens have published customer advisories and trained their frontline staff to provide guidance to customers on the use of digital tokens.

While banks like DBS, OCBC and UOB have stopped issuing hardware tokens, by default, to customers who apply for Internet banking, their customers can request for hardware tokens if they prefer this method of authentication.