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  • Installation en mode ferme

    4 février 2011, par

    Le mode ferme permet d’héberger plusieurs sites de type MediaSPIP en n’installant qu’une seule fois son noyau fonctionnel.
    C’est la méthode que nous utilisons sur cette même plateforme.
    L’utilisation en mode ferme nécessite de connaïtre un peu le mécanisme de SPIP contrairement à la version standalone qui ne nécessite pas réellement de connaissances spécifique puisque l’espace privé habituel de SPIP n’est plus utilisé.
    Dans un premier temps, vous devez avoir installé les mêmes fichiers que l’installation (...)

  • Taille des images et des logos définissables

    9 février 2011, par

    Dans beaucoup d’endroits du site, logos et images sont redimensionnées pour correspondre aux emplacements définis par les thèmes. L’ensemble des ces tailles pouvant changer d’un thème à un autre peuvent être définies directement dans le thème et éviter ainsi à l’utilisateur de devoir les configurer manuellement après avoir changé l’apparence de son site.
    Ces tailles d’images sont également disponibles dans la configuration spécifique de MediaSPIP Core. La taille maximale du logo du site en pixels, on permet (...)

  • La sauvegarde automatique de canaux SPIP

    1er avril 2010, par

    Dans le cadre de la mise en place d’une plateforme ouverte, il est important pour les hébergeurs de pouvoir disposer de sauvegardes assez régulières pour parer à tout problème éventuel.
    Pour réaliser cette tâche on se base sur deux plugins SPIP : Saveauto qui permet une sauvegarde régulière de la base de donnée sous la forme d’un dump mysql (utilisable dans phpmyadmin) mes_fichiers_2 qui permet de réaliser une archive au format zip des données importantes du site (les documents, les éléments (...)

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  • What is a Cohort Report ? A Beginner’s Guide to Cohort Analysis

    3 janvier 2024, par Erin

    Handling your user data as a single mass of numbers is rarely conducive to figuring out meaningful patterns you can use to improve your marketing campaigns.

    A cohort report (or cohort analysis) can help you quickly break down that larger audience into sequential segments and contrast and compare based on various metrics. As such, it is a great tool for unlocking more granular trends and insights — for example, identifying patterns in engagement and conversions based on the date users first interacted with your site.

    In this guide, we explain the basics of the cohort report and the best way to set one up to get the most out of it.

    What is a cohort report ?

    In a cohort report, you divide a data set into groups based on certain criteria — typically a time-based cohort metric like first purchase date — and then analyse the data across those segments, looking for patterns.

    Date-based cohort analysis is the most common approach, often creating cohorts based on the day a user completed a particular action — signed up, purchased something or visited your website. Depending on the metric you choose to measure (like return visits), the cohort report might look something like this :

    Example of a basic cohort report

    Note that this is not a universal benchmark or anything of the sort. The above is a theoretical cohort analysis based on app users who downloaded the app, tracking and comparing the retention rates as the days go by. 

    The benchmarks will be drastically different depending on the metric you’re measuring and the basis for your cohorts. For example, if you’re measuring returning visitor rates among first-time visitors to your website, expect single-digit percentages even on the second day.

    Your industry will also greatly affect what you consider positive in a cohort report. For example, if you’re a subscription SaaS, you’d expect high continued usage rates over the first week. If you sell office supplies to companies, much less so.

    What is an example of a cohort ?

    As we just mentioned, a typical cohort analysis separates users or customers by the date they first interacted with your business — in this case, they downloaded your app. Within that larger analysis, the users who downloaded it on May 3 represent a single cohort.

    Illustration of a specific cohort

    In this case, we’ve chosen behaviour and time — the app download day — to separate the user base into cohorts. That means every specific day denotes a specific cohort within the analysis.

    Diving deeper into an individual cohort may be a good idea for important holidays or promotional events like Black Friday.

    Of course, cohorts don’t have to be based on specific behaviour within certain periods. You can also create cohorts based on other dimensions :

    • Transactional data — revenue per user
    • Churn data — date of churn
    • Behavioural cohort — based on actions taken on your website, app or e-commerce store, like the number of sessions per user or specific product pages visited
    • Acquisition cohort — which channel referred the user or customer

    For more information on different cohort types, read our in-depth guide on cohort analysis.

    How to create a cohort report (and make sense of it)

    Matomo makes it easy to view and analyse different cohorts (without the privacy and legal implications of using Google Analytics).

    Here are a few different ways to set up a cohort report in Matomo, starting with our built-in cohorts report.

    Cohort reports

    With Matomo, cohort reports are automatically compiled based on the first visit date. The default metric is the percentage of returning visitors.

    Screenshot of the cohorts report in Matomo analytics

    Changing the settings allows you to create multiple variations of cohort analysis reports.

    Break down cohorts by different metrics

    The percentage of returning visits can be valuable if you’re trying to improve early engagement in a SaaS app onboarding process. But it’s far from your only option.

    You can also compare performance by conversion, revenue, bounce rate, actions per visit, average session duration or other metrics.

    Cohort metric options in Matomo analytics

    Change the time and scope of your cohort analysis

    Splitting up cohorts by single days may be useless if you don’t have a high volume of users or visitors. If the average cohort size is only a few users, you won’t be able to identify reliable patterns. 

    Matomo lets you set any time period to create your cohort analysis report. Instead of the most recent days, you can create cohorts by week, month, year or custom date ranges. 

    Date settings in the cohorts report in Matomo analytics

    Cohort sizes will depend on your customer base. Make sure each cohort is large enough to encapsulate all the customers in that cohort and not so small that you have insignificant cohorts of only a few customers. Choose a date range that gives you that without scaling it too far so you can’t identify any seasonal trends.

    Cohort analysis can be a great tool if you’ve recently changed your marketing, product offering or onboarding. Set the data range to weekly and look for any impact in conversions and revenue after the changes.

    Using the “compare to” feature, you can also do month-over-month, quarter-over-quarter or any custom date range comparisons. This approach can help you get a rough overview of your campaign’s long-term progress without doing any in-depth analysis.

    You can also use the same approach to compare different holiday seasons against each other.

    If you want to combine time cohorts with segmentation, you can run cohort reports for different subsets of visitors instead of all visitors. This can lead to actionable insights like adjusting weekend or specific seasonal promotions to improve conversion rates.

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    Easily create custom cohort reports beyond the time dimension

    If you want to split your audience into cohorts by focusing on something other than time, you will need to create a custom report and choose another dimension. In Matomo, you can choose from a wide range of cohort metrics, including referrers, e-commerce signals like viewed product or product category, form submissions and more.

    Custom report options in Matomo

    Then, you can create a simple table-based report with all the insights you need by choosing the metrics you want to see. For example, you could choose average visit duration, bounce rate and other usage metrics.

    Metrics selected in a Matomo custom report

    If you want more revenue-focused insights, add metrics like conversions, add-to-cart and other e-commerce events.

    Custom reports make it easy to create cohort reports for almost any dimension. You can use any metric within demographic and behavioural analytics to create a cohort. (You can explore the complete list of our possible segmentation metrics.)

    We cover different types of custom reports (and ideas for specific marketing campaigns) in our guide on custom segmentation.

    Create your first cohort report and gain better insights into your visitors

    Cohort reports can help you identify trends and the impact of short-term marketing efforts like events and promotions.

    With Matomo cohort reports you have the power to create complex custom reports for various cohorts and segments. 

    If you’re looking for a powerful, easy-to-use web analytics solution that gives you 100% accurate data without compromising your users’ privacy, Matomo is a great fit. Get started with a 21-day free trial today. No credit card required. 

  • The Ultimate List of Alternatives to Google Products

    2 août 2022, par Erin — Privacy

    For many businesses, Google products can play an integral part in the productivity, function and even success of the company. This is because Google has designed their digital ecosystem to infiltrate every aspect of your work and personal life at low-to-no cost.

    On the surface, this seems like a no-brainer. Why not have a cost-effective and seamlessly connected tech stack ? It’s the complete package. 

    From Gmail to Google Analytics, it becomes hard to untangle yourself from this intricate web Google has managed to spin. But like a web, you know there’s also a catch.

    This leads us to the big question… Why stop ?

    In this blog, we’ll cover :

    Why de-Google ?

    Google products are convenient and seemingly free. However, in recent years, Google’s name has become synonymous with privacy breaches, data leaks and illegal under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

    As their track record shows a glaring disregard for data protection, a growing list of EU member countries like Austria, France, Denmark and Italy have banned Google products, such as Google Analytics, Google Workspace and Google Chromebook.

    Google offers free products and services, but not out of altruism. There’s a trade-off. By using Google’s “free” products, your customers’ and your own online activity becomes a commodity that can be sold to advertisers.

    When the risks of using Google products are considered, it becomes clear the need to plot a pathway to de-Google your business. If you’re wondering how in the world to uncoil from this web, fortunately, there are plenty of privacy-friendly, secure alternatives to Google products that you can choose.

    Disclaimer : Below, we’ve tried our best to provide a comprehensive list of alternatives to Google products for businesses, but because you know your business best, we’d also encourage you to do your own research to ensure the tool will suit your unique needs.

    Best Google alternative tools for business

    Overall business tools

    Google Workspace alternatives

    Google Workspace isn’t GDPR compliant by default, so businesses are at risk of fines and reputational damage. More EU countries are reaching the same conclusion that Google products are violating EU law. Data Protection Authorities from Norway and Denmark have deemed Google Workspace illegal in accordance with the GDPR. 

    Nextcloud

    Nextcloud is an open-source and self-hosted productivity platform that offers a suite of services to replace the major features found in Google Workspace, such as Google Drive, Calendar, Docs, Forms and Tasks. 

    You can share files and collaborate without worrying about data being shared with unauthorised individuals or companies. As a self-hosted suite, you’re in full control of where your data is, who has access to it and can comply with the strictest of data protection legislations.

    Nextcloud dashboard
    Zoho

    Zoho is a Google Workspace alternative built on the same principles as Google’s productivity suite. It offers a suite of online office tools, including email, calendar and task management, but with an emphasis on privacy protection. Zoho doesn’t rely on advertising revenue to support their business which means your personal data will never be sold or used for targeted ads. 

    With over 75 million users globally, Zoho offers data encryption at rest and at transit, multi-factor authentication and complies with strict security standards set by HIPAA, the Cloud Security Alliance and the GDPR.

    Zoho dashboard

    Gmail alternatives

    Google only encrypts emails via STARTTLS. In other words, your data isn’t end-to-end encrypted and can be decrypted by them at any time. Gmail also has a history of allowing third-party app developers that work with Gmail to access private and personal Gmail messages for their own market research purposes.

    ProtonMail

    ProtonMail is a secure, open-source email service that provides end-to-end encryption, so only the sender and receiver can access the messages. Proton deliberately doesn’t possess the key needed to decrypt any part of the message, so you know your sensitive business information is always private. 

    To protect users from digital surveillance, they also provide enhanced tracking protections and don’t rely on ads, so your data isn’t mined for advertising purposes. Not only that, you can also sync ProtonMail with a host of other Google alternative products, such as Proton Calendar and Proton Drive.

    Proton Mail
    Mailfence

    Mailfence is a highly secure communications and planning platform that offers a complete email suite, as well as, Documents, a Calendar and Groups. It provides end-to-end encryption and comes with a built-in data loss prevention system that prevents unauthorised access to your sensitive information. 

    Mailfence is completely ad-free and promises to never commercialise its databases or share data with third parties for targeted ads.

    Mailfence
    Tutanota

    Tutanota is an open-source email service known as one of the first to offer end-to-end encryption. It boasts a user-friendly interface and offers a fast, simple and secure email service that works on web and mobile platforms. Stringent security, in addition to TOTP and U2F for two-factor authentication means you control who has access to your email and messages. 

    It requires no phone number or personal information to register for a free account. In addition, Tutanota doesn’t earn money through ads, its servers are based in Europe and it is fully GDPR compliant.

    Google Calendar alternatives

    Calendars can contain a lot of personal information (who you are meeting, location, contact info, etc.), which is well worth keeping private. 

    Proton Calendar

    With Proton Calendar all event details – participants, locations, event names, descriptions and notes are end-to-end encrypted. It has a clean and easy-to-use interface, and you get a full set of advanced features to replace Google Calendar, such as the ability to create events and reminders, add multiple calendars and set up repeating events. You can easily sync all your calendars between mobile and desktop apps.

    Mailfence Calendar

    Mailfence Calendar lets you manage, schedule and track your events and meetings. Similar to Google Calendar, you can invite people to events using their Mailfence email IDs, but it doesn’t track your location or email address.

    Tutanota Calendar

    Tutanota Calendar offers built-in encryption, so no one else can decrypt and read your information.

    You can keep track of your appointments and meetings in a secure environment that only you have access to. You get features, such as day/week/month view, all-day events, recurring events, upcoming events view and shared calendars. You can also sync it with other apps such as Outlook.

    Tutanota calendar event
    Nextcloud Calendar app

    Nextcloud also offers a Calendar app which easily syncs events from different devices with your Nextcloud account. You can integrate it with other Nextcloud apps like Contacts, Talk and Tasks.

    Nextcloud calendar

    Google Drive alternatives

    The GDPR emphasises end-to-end encryption as a safeguard against data leaks, but Google Drive isn’t end-to-end encrypted, so Google has access to the data on its servers. 

    In their privacy policy, they also state that this data can be analysed for advertising purposes, so although you’re using “free” Cloud storage, users need to be aware that they’re paying for this by giving Google access to any and all data stored in Google Drive.

    Proton Drive

    Proton Drive is a secure and private Cloud storage service that provides you with an easy-to-use, customisable and secure file management system.

    It uses end-to-end encryption to secure your data and keep it safe from prying eyes. As you have full control over your data, you can decide how long it’s stored and who has access to it. You can also choose how much of your information is shared with other users.

    Proton Drive
    Nextcloud

    Nextcloud works on your own server, so you can access and share your data wherever you are. It’s a file hosting service that lets you store files, sync them across your devices and collaborate with others on projects. 

    It also provides encryption for all the files that you store on its servers, so you can rest assured that no one can see your information without your permission.

    Nextcloud Drive
    Syncthing

    Syncthing is a free, open-source file synchronisation program that allows you to store and access your files wherever you are. It’s designed to be fast, secure and easy to use, making it a great alternative to Google Drive. 

    With Syncthing, you can sync files across multiple computers and mobile devices at once. So if you create, delete or modify files on one machine, they will automatically be replicated on other devices. Data is saved directly to a location you choose, so you can securely backup your data without needing a third-party cloud service.

    Google Docs alternatives

    Google states they can “collect information” from Google-hosted content such as Docs by means of automated scanning. 

    Not only does this stoke spying fears, it also raises concerns over who holds power over your content. If they look through your docs and decide that you’ve violated their terms of service, you can get locked out of your Google Docs – as was the case when a National Geographic crime reporter had her story “frozen” by Google.

    LibreOffice

    LibreOffice is a free, open-source office suite with all the features you need to create and edit documents, presentations and spreadsheets. It’s compatible with many different languages and all Microsoft Office file formats. 

    Unlike Google Docs, LibreOffice doesn’t store your documents on the Cloud. As it runs on your own computer, you maintain complete control and the data is kept as private and as secure as you wish. LibreOffice also has an online version that works with most web browsers and can be used on Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems. 

    The open-source nature ensures security as the code is constantly improved and scouted for vulnerabilities.

    Nextcloud Office

    Like Google Docs, Nextcloud Office lets you create new documents and spreadsheets and collaborate with teammates or colleagues. But unlike Google Docs, Nextcloud doesn’t collect any data on who is using its platform, or what they’re doing on it. You can even encrypt the files you store in Nextcloud, so no one else can see them unless you give them access to your account.

    Nextcloud Office

    Google Keep alternative

    Standard Notes

    Standard Notes is an open-source online notebook app that offers a variety of useful features, such as tasks, to-dos and spreadsheets. 

    Unlike Google Keep, which has access to your notes, Standard Notes is end-to-end encrypted, which protects all your information and keeps it securely synced across all your devices. Standard Notes supports text, images and audio notes. As open-source software, they value transparency and trust and don’t rely on tracking or intrusive ads.

    Standard notes dashboard

    Google Chrome alternatives

    Google Chrome is notorious for stalking users and collecting information for their own gains. Their browser fuels their data gathering infrastructure by being able to collect info about your search history, location, personal data and product interaction data for “personalisation” purposes – essentially to build a profile of you to sell to advertisers.

    Firefox

    Firefox is one of the most secure browsers for privacy and is trusted by 220 million users. It easily compares with Chrome in terms of ease of use and performance. 

    On top of that it offers enhanced privacy protections, so you get a browser that doesn’t stalk you and isn’t riddled with ads.

    Firefox
  • Open Banking Security 101 : Is open banking safe ?

    3 décembre 2024, par Daniel Crough — Banking and Financial Services

    Open banking is changing the financial industry. Statista reports that open banking transactions hit $57 billion worldwide in 2023 and will likely reach $330 billion by 2027. According to ACI, global real-time payment (RTP) transactions are expected to exceed $575 billion by 2028.

    Open banking is changing how banking works, but is it safe ? And what are the data privacy and security implications for global financial service providers ?

    This post explains the essentials of open banking security and addresses critical data protection and compliance questions. We’ll explore how a privacy-first approach to data analytics can help you meet regulatory requirements, build customer trust and ultimately thrive in the open banking market while offering innovative financial products.

     

    Discover trends, strategies, and opportunities to balance compliance and competitiveness.

    What is open banking ?

    Open banking is a system that connects banks, authorised third-party providers and technology, empowering customers to securely share their financial data with other companies. At the same time, it unlocks access to more innovative and personalised financial products and services like spend management solutions, tailored budgeting apps and more convenient payment gateways. 

    With open banking, consumers have greater choice and control over their financial data, ultimately fostering a more competitive financial industry, supporting technological innovation and paving the way for a more customer-centric financial future.

    Imagine offering your clients a service that analyses spending habits across all accounts — no matter the institution — and automatically finds ways to save them money. Envision providing personalised financial advice tailored to individual needs or enabling customers to apply for a mortgage with just a few taps on their phone. That’s the power of open banking.

    Embracing this technology is an opportunity for banks and fintech companies to build new solutions for customers who are eager for a more transparent and personalised digital experience.

    How is open banking different from traditional banking ?

    In traditional banking, consumers’ financial data is locked away and siloed within each bank’s systems, accessible only to the bank and the account holder. While account holders could manually aggregate and share this data, the process is cumbersome and prone to errors.

    With open banking, users can choose what data to share and with whom, allowing trusted third-party providers to access their financial information directly from the source. 

    Side-by-side comparison between open banking and traditional banking showing the flow of financial information between the bank and the user with and without a third party.

    How does open banking work ?

    The technology that makes open banking possible is the application programming interface (API). Think of banking APIs as digital translators for different software systems ; instead of translating languages, they translate data and code.

    The bank creates and publishes APIs that provide secure access to specific types of customer data, like credit card transaction history and account balances. The open banking API acts like a friendly librarian, ready to assist apps in accessing the information they need in a secure and organised way.

    Third-party providers, like fintech companies, use these APIs to build their applications and services. Some tech companies also act as intermediaries between fintechs and banks to simplify connections to multiple APIs simultaneously.

    For example, banks like BBVA (Spain) and Capital One (USA) offer secure API platforms. Fintechs like Plaid and TrueLayer use those banking APIs as a bridge to users’ financial data. This bridge gives other service providers like Venmo, Robinhood and Coinbase access to customer data, allowing them to offer new payment gateways and investment tools that traditional banks don’t provide.

    Is open banking safe for global financial services ?

    Yes, open banking is designed from the ground up to be safe for global financial services.

    Open banking doesn’t make customer financial data publicly available. Instead, it uses a secure, regulated framework for sharing information. This framework relies on strong security measures and regulatory oversight to protect user data and ensure responsible access by authorised third-party providers.

    In the following sections, we’ll explore the key security features and banking regulations that make this technology safe and reliable.

    Regulatory compliance in open banking

    Regulatory oversight is a cornerstone of open banking security.

    In the UK and the EU, strict regulations govern how companies access and use customer data. The revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) in Europe mandates strong customer authentication and secure communication, promoting a high level of security for open banking services.

    To offer open banking services, companies must register with their respective regulatory bodies and comply with all applicable data protection laws.

    For example, third-party service providers in the UK must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and listed on the Financial Services Register. Depending on the service they provide, they must get an Account Information Service Provider (AISP) or a Payment Initiation Service Provider (PISP) license.

    Similar regulations and registries exist across Europe, enforced by the European National Competent Authority, like BaFin in Germany and the ACPR in France.

    In the United States, open banking providers don’t require a special federal license. However, this will soon change, as the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) unveiled a series of rules on 22 October 2024 to establish a regulatory framework for open banking.

    These regulations ensure that only trusted providers can participate in the open banking ecosystem. Anyone can check if a company is a trusted provider on public databases like the Regulated Providers registry on openbanking.org.uk. While being registered doesn’t guarantee fair play, it adds a layer of safety for consumers and banks.

    Key open banking security features that make it safe for global financial services

    Open banking is built on a foundation of solid security measures. Let’s explore five key features that make it safe and reliable for financial institutions and their customers.

    List of the five most important features that make open banking safe for global finance

    Strong Customer Authentication (SCA)

    Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) is a security principle that protects against unauthorised access to user financial data. It’s a regulated and legally required form of multi-factor authentication (MFA) within the European Economic Area.

    SCA mandates that users verify their identity using at least two of the following three factors :

    • Something they know (a password, PIN, security question, etc.)
    • Something they have (a mobile phone, a hardware token or a bank card)
    • Something they are (a fingerprint, facial recognition or voice recognition)

    This type of authentication helps reduce the risk of fraud and unauthorised transactions.

    API security

    PSD2 regulations mandate that banks provide open APIs, giving consumers the right to use any third-party service provider for their online banking services. According to McKinsey research, this has led to a surge in API adoption within the banking sector, with the largest banks allocating 14% of their IT budget to APIs. 

    To ensure API security, banks and financial service providers implement several measures, including :

    • API gateways, which act as a central point of control for all API traffic, enforcing security policies and preventing unauthorised access
    • API keys and tokens to authenticate and authorise API requests (the equivalent of a library card for apps)
    • Rate limiting to prevent denial-of-service attacks by limiting the number of requests a third-party application can make within a specific timeframe
    • Regular security audits and penetration testing to identify and address potential vulnerabilities in the API infrastructure

    Data minimisation and purpose limitation

    Data minimisation and purpose limitation are fundamental principles of data protection that contribute significantly to open banking safety.

    Data minimisation means third parties will collect and process only the data necessary to provide their service. Purpose limitation requires them to use the collected data only for its original purpose.

    For example, a budgeting app that helps users track their spending only needs access to transaction history and account balances. It doesn’t need access to the user’s full transaction details, investment portfolio or loan applications.

    Limiting the data collected from individual banks significantly reduces the risk of potential misuse or exposure in a data breach.

    Encryption

    Encryption is a security method that protects data in transit and at rest. It scrambles data into an unreadable format, making it useless to anyone without the decryption key.

    In open banking, encryption protects users’ data as it travels between the bank and the third-party provider’s systems via the API. It also protects data stored on the bank’s and the provider’s servers. Encryption ensures that even if a breach occurs, user data remains confidential.

    Explicit consent

    In open banking, before a third-party provider can access user data, it must first inform the user what data it will pull and why. The customer must then give their explicit consent to the third party collecting and processing that data.

    This transparency and control are essential for building trust and ensuring customers feel safe using third-party services.

    But beyond that, from the bank’s perspective, explicit customer consent is also vital for compliance with GDPR and other data protection regulations. It can also help limit the bank’s liability in case of a data breach.

    Explicit consent goes beyond sharing financial data. It’s also part of new data privacy regulations around tracking user behaviour online. This is where an ethical web analytics solution like Matomo can be invaluable. Matomo fully complies with some of the world’s strictest privacy regulations, like GDPR, lGPD and HIPAA. With Matomo, you get peace of mind knowing you can continue gathering valuable insights to improve your services and user experience while respecting user privacy and adhering to regulations.

    Risks of open banking for global financial services

    While open banking offers significant benefits, it’s crucial to acknowledge the associated risks. Understanding these risks allows financial institutions to implement safeguards and protect themselves and their customers.

    List of the three key risks that banks should always keep in mind.

    Risk of data breaches

    By its nature, open banking is like adding more doors and windows to your house. It’s convenient but also gives burglars more ways to break in.

    Open banking increases what cybersecurity professionals call the “attack surface,” or the number of potential points of vulnerability for hackers to steal financial data.

    Data breaches are a serious threat to banks and financial institutions. According to IBM’s 2024 Cost of a Data Breach Report, each breach costs companies in the US an average of $4.88 million. Therefore, banks and fintechs must prioritise strong security measures and data protection protocols to mitigate these risks.

    Risk of third-party access

    By definition, open banking involves granting third-party providers access to customer financial information. This introduces a level of risk outside the bank’s direct control.

    Financial institutions must carefully vet third-party providers, ensuring they meet stringent security standards and comply with all relevant data protection regulations.

    Risk of user account takeover

    Open banking can increase the risk of user account takeover if adequate security measures are not in place. For example, if a malicious third-party provider gains unauthorised access to a user’s bank login details, they could take control of the user’s account and make fraudulent bank transactions.

    A proactive approach to security, continuous monitoring and a commitment to evolving best practices and security protocols are crucial for navigating the open banking landscape.

    Open banking and data analytics : A balancing act for financial institutions

    The additional data exchanged through open banking unveils deeper insights into customer behaviour and preferences. This data can fuel innovation, enabling the development of personalised products and services and improved risk management strategies.

    However, using this data responsibly requires a careful balancing act.

    Too much reliance on data without proper safeguards can erode trust and invite regulatory issues. The opposite can stifle innovation and limit the technology’s potential.

    Matomo Analytics derisks web and app environments by giving full control over what data is tracked and how it is stored. The platform prioritises user data privacy and security while providing valuable data and analytics that will be familiar to anyone who has used Google Analytics.

    Open banking, data privacy and AI

    The future of open banking is entangled with emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. These technologies significantly enhance open banking analytics, personalise services, and automate financial tasks.

    Several banks, credit unions and financial service providers are already exploring AI’s potential in open banking. For example, HSBC developed the AI-enabled FX Prompt in 2023 to improve forex trading. The bank processed 823 million client API calls, many of which were open banking.

    However, using AI in open banking raises important data privacy considerations. As the American Bar Association highlights, balancing personalisation with responsible AI use is crucial for open banking’s future. Financial institutions must ensure that AI-driven solutions are developed and implemented ethically, respecting customer privacy and data protection.

    Conclusion

    Open banking presents a significant opportunity for innovation and growth in the financial services industry. While it’s important to acknowledge the associated risks, security measures like explicit customer consent, encryption and regulatory frameworks make open banking a safe and reliable system for banks and their clients.

    Financial service providers must adopt a multifaceted approach to data privacy, implementing privacy-centred solutions across all aspects of their business, from open banking to online services and web analytics.

    By prioritising data privacy and security, financial institutions can build customer trust, unlock the full potential of open banking and thrive in today’s changing financial environment.