02 July 2024
Telkomsel has signed a MoU with Tencent Cloud and local digital infrastructure company M Cash Integrasi to explore the adoption of palm scanning technology as a biometric tool to improve customer service.
Palm scanner biometrics identify individual customers based on unique patterns on the palm of the hand, to include fingerprints, skin patterns and vein mapping. Telkomsel sees this technology as a potential customer verification tool for Know Your Customer (KYC), which it says will make the KYC process ‘faster, more efficient, safer and more comfortable.’
Telkomsel sales director Adiwinahyu Basuki Sigit said in a statement that palm scanners are part of its “commitment to increasing customer comfort, speed and security.”
Palm-based biometrics offer several advantages over other biometric solutions – it’s not affected by factors such as height, facial similarities between twins, and crowded conditions. Telkomsel also claims palm scanning is less prone to error because the process is caught on camera. Additionally, security experts have noted that palm scanning is potentially more accurate, as palms have more distinct identifying features between people.
Palm-scanning is also potentially less intrusive than facial recognition technologies in that palm scanners require active consent – the person must willingly and physically put their palm on the scanning device. This matters because – unlike a database full of facial recognition data – palm print data can’t be used for more intrusive applications like surveillance cameras.
Telkomsel said that the technology is agnostic enough to be used across different types of hardware, software, and platforms, making it easy to implement. It will implement palm scanner technology in the work environment for customer service and B2B use cases.
“This technology will not only increase user comfort and security, but will also encourage innovation and digital transformation in Indonesia,” said Jimmy Chen, VP of Tencent Cloud International and business director for Tencent Cloud APAC.
