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The security expert believes that banks have a lot to gain by demanding compensation from the victim in fraud cases. A proposal for a new law that can transfer responsibility to banks will be considered next week.
The Consumer Council hopes the Supreme Court will make it clear how the evidence will be evaluated when someone is exposed to BankID fraud.
Gorm Kallestad / NTB scanpix
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On Tuesday, the trial of a BankID fraud case began in the Supreme Court.
The case, which was appealed by the Agder Court of Appeal, concerns a person who was defrauded of around NOK 1.4 million by a colleague.
The colleague obtained a loan in the victim’s name using his BankID chip, which was kept in a locker at work. Since then, the colleague has been convicted of fraud.
EasyBank is now demanding more than NOK 100,000 in compensation.
But it is the victim of the fraud, and not the convicted colleague, that the claim is directed at.
The Consumers Council believes that the Supreme Court case could be important for future assessment of the burden of proof in fraud cases.
Gorm Kallesta, NTB scanpix
The new law transfers responsibility to banks
The question of whether the holder of the BankID chip is liable for the financial loss is at the center of the debate on the new Financial Contract Law.
The bill will be considered by the Justice Committee at the Storting on September 17 and a recommendation is expected on November 17.
As E24 has previously written, current regulations allow banks to make large compensation claims against victims of fraud.
The new proposal shifts the burden of proof in fraud cases to banks.
If the new bill passes, the main rule will no longer be that you must cover the financial loss yourself if you are exposed to fraud.
The proposal proposes a deductible of NOK 450, if the court determines that the owner of the BankID chip has acted negligently.
In the event of gross negligence, the deductible increases to NOK 12,000.
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Security expert: – It could mean the death of BankID
Password and security expert Per Thorsheim criticizes the fact that today it is the victim’s responsibility to prove their innocence.
According to him, it is easier than most people think to get access to someone’s BankID codes.
– If the Supreme Court concludes that storing BankID at work is gross negligence, then it must mean the death of BankID on a mobile phone, he says.
Thorsheim points out that the mobile phone is everywhere and that BankID can be run even if a smartphone is locked. It refers to research that indicates that the self-selected four-digit PIN code is far from impossible for scammers to crack.
– The statistic for correct guessing is that with three attempts per. person, then you will hit one of the 11 people directly, says Thorsheim.
Security expert Per Thorsheim will have stricter testing requirements from banks to prove guilt in the BankID fraud.
Private
– Hides behind BankID
According to an annual survey by the Norwegian Center for Information Security (NorSIS), 150,000 people over the age of 18 have been exposed to identity theft in the last two years. Torsheim believes that the banks have a lot to gain by claiming compensation from the victim.
– It’s simply cheaper and more profitable for the bank than going after scammers, says Thorsheim.
He believes that current legislation allows the financial industry to hide behind the claim that BankID is safe.
– But the security of the various user websites is equally important, he says, adding:
– We cannot have legislation that is based on you, whatever happens, do not be fooled.
The Council of Consumers: – The victim is the weakest part.
Thorsheim is supported by Consumers Council Director Inger Lise Blyverket. She says victims who are exposed to fraud are “almost out of court.”
– In this and many other of these cases, consumers are faced with a strong professional player. In the relationship between the bank, the consumer and the fraudster, the consumer is always the weakest party, says Blyverket.
The Council of Consumers is the assistant to the party in the current case.
– We hope that the Supreme Court can now make it clear what kind of evaluations will be done and how the evidence will be evaluated, so that we can avoid so many cases so burdensome for consumers, says Blyverket.
The Director of the Consumer Council, Inger Lise Blyverket, fully understands that fraud cases are very burdensome for victims.
Berit roald
Fearing a new law will result in more fraud
One of the big questions in the liability debate is close relationship fraud.
If your spouse uses your BankID chip to obtain a consumer loan in your name, is it reasonable to expect the bank to be responsible for covering the loss?
This is not the opinion of the leading financial industry organization, Finans Norge.
According to the director of consumer policy, Gry Nergård, NOK 450 is too low a sum to pay for negligence.
– We fear that the new law means that each and every one of us will be less careful about protecting our BankID.
She says that the BankID system still depends on a high degree of trust.
– This does not mean that banks should never take responsibility. But the balance being struck in the new regulations is wrong, says Nergård, who was a consumer advocate until 2016.
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Banks’ lobbying campaign against new fraud allegations: 20 meetings with the Mæland ministry
Strong resistance
The government has taken almost three years to complete the proposal for a new Financial Contract Law. The use of time has drawn criticism from both the opposition and the consumer authorities.
The bill was first introduced in December 2017 and was met with immediate protests from the banking industry in the consultation round.
As E24 mentioned earlier, the banking industry has carried out an intense lobbying campaign against the bill behind the scenesand has been in frequent meetings with the Ministry of Justice.
