UAE Banks Federation (UBF) has proposed improvements to cheque verification processes to help lower fraud and help the country move towards being a cashless society.
These plans were outlined during a workshop dedicated to UBF member banks to identify new ways to approach cheque fraud.
During the workshop, the UBF declared that member banks will begin to increasingly use QR codes to boost cheque security with an enhanced encryption technology.
Utilising this technology would mean individual cheques would be allocated a random number which is digitally read, ensuring automated and secure verification. Each cheque is given a unique number, giving banks the ability to process legitimate ones.
This automated approach is expected to use a cryptographic protocol called HASH which uses an algorithm to combine a random number of magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) data. The solution gives unique numbers to cheques and this data is only stored on the cheque.
When a cheque is presented to a bank, the QR code is scanned and the MICR is taken and matched to the CheuqeChain system for verification.
Mashreq Bank CEO AbdulAziz Al Ghurair said, “We are committed to enhancing the security of the UAE financial system and today’s announcement is further evidence of our collective desire to tackle the issue of cheque fraud.
“By introducing technology that allows us to detect problems in real time, we are confident that we can lessen the impact of fraud on our customers. In addition, these changes will improve operational efficiency, reduce costs and lay the foundations for further innovation that will benefit the banking sector.”
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