Understanding Anti-Spoofing Authentication: Common Technologies and Risks

Identity authentication is no longer a supplementary step in enterprise operational processes, particularly for financial institutions, insurance companies, banks, or government agencies. Within the context of robust digital transformation currently underway, anti-spoofing authentication has become the first and most critical barrier protecting users, data, and internal systems from increasingly sophisticated risks.

However, not all organisations possess a comprehensive understanding of current authentication technologies and common security vulnerabilities. This article will provide organisations and enterprises with a complete and strategic perspective on anti-spoofing authentication, enabling them to make appropriate choices for their digital transformation journey.

Why Anti-Spoofing Authentication is Essential

Identity impersonation is becoming one of the most prevalent forms of attack in Vietnam, particularly within the financial, banking, insurance, and e-commerce sectors. According to reports from the Vietnam Computer Emergency Response Team (VNCERT), the number of incidents related to identity impersonation in 2024 increased by more than 40% compared to the same period in the previous year.

Malicious actors can create fictitious identities to open bank accounts or e-wallets for money laundering purposes, conduct fraudulent unsecured lending schemes before absconding, impersonate customers to exploit insurance benefits, or gain unauthorised access to enterprise systems. All these activities, if not controlled through robust authentication solutions, will result in severe consequences, including financial damage, reputational harm, and potential legal violations if organisations fail to comply with current information security regulations.

Common Anti-Spoofing Authentication Technologies

Over recent years, authentication has undergone a  significant transformation from traditional methods to digitalisation. The following authentication technologies are being widely applied, along with advantages and disadvantages requiring consideration.

a. OTP and Passwords - Obsolete Methods

Authentication methods based on OTP sent via SMS or email, along with passwords, represent the most common yet most vulnerable approaches. Hackers can employ phishing techniques, SIM swapping, or malware to obtain this information. These methods cannot verify users' actual identities and remain susceptible to impersonation or access hijacking.

b. OCR and Selfie - Basic but Insufficient

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology for scanning identity documents combined with selfie photographs represents an initial step in electronic authentication. However, this method can still be circumvented through re-photographed images, fake photographs, or sophisticated forged documents. These approaches cannot detect fake chips in chip-enabled citizen identity cards, lack deep biometric comparison capabilities, and remain vulnerable to exploitation without liveness detection technology.

c. Facial Recognition with Liveness Detection - Modern Authentication

This represents a significant advancement in contemporary authentication. The technology employs artificial intelligence to analyse facial biometric characteristics and compare them with photographs stored in chips or population databases. The advantages include the capability to detect fake images, fake videos, and 3D photographs, along with high accuracy rates when utilising well-trained AI models and real-time online operation capabilities.

Considerations include dependence on user device camera quality and the need for close coordination with authoritative data sources to enhance reliability.

d. Chip-Enabled Citizen Identity Card Authentication - New National Standard

Since 2021, Vietnam has implemented chip-enabled citizen identity cards, creating a watershed moment for digital identification. Modern authentication solutions can directly extract data from chips for comparison with genuine photographs, making counterfeiting virtually impossible. Superior advantages include integration of authentic data from the Ministry of Public Security, detection of all forms of chip forgery, image editing, and information alteration, along with effective combination with facial recognition for dual-layer authentication.

Risks of Inadequate Authentication Implementation

One of the most significant errors organisations make involves underestimating the initial authentication step. Consequences extend beyond financial damage to encompass legal and user trust dimensions.

a. Violations of Current Legal Regulations

Legal documents including Decree 13/2023/ND-CP on personal data protection, Decree 59/2022/ND-CP on digital banking activity management, and Circular 50/2024/TT-NHNN from the State Bank regarding security requirements for online service provision all require organisations to implement effective electronic customer authentication measures with anti-spoofing capabilities and comprehensive audit trails. Non-compliance with these standards not only subjects enterprises to penalties but may also result in suspension of digital operations, causing long-term damage.

b. Customer Trust Deterioration

A single impersonation incident, regardless of frequency, can destroy entire brand credibility. Customers lose confidence in enterprise processes, resulting in cascading effects on communications, revenue, and a loyal user base.

c. Facilitating Advanced Cybercrime

When hackers identify authentication vulnerabilities within systems, they view these as entry points for expanded attacks, ranging from access hijacking and data theft to creating numerous fake accounts and supply chain fraud.

FPT eID - Comprehensive Authentication Solution Following Vietnamese Standards

Within Vietnam's digital authentication ecosystem, FPT eID emerged as a pioneering solution comprehensively addressing three critical factors: technology, legal compliance, and practical implementation capability.

The solution offers superior technology through chip-enabled citizen identity card authentication that reads and analyses internal chip data, facial recognition integrated with liveness detection achieving 100% accuracy in testing, intelligent spoofing detection automatically identifying edited images, printed photographs, screen images, or deepfake content, and facial search capabilities processing 10 million faces within one second.

FPT eID ensures full compliance with Vietnamese law through deployment with major banking and financial partners in Vietnam, whilst guaranteeing AES 256-bit data storage and processing standards, cloud partitioning according to security requirements, and cooperation agreements with Department C06 of the Ministry of Public Security, ensuring authentic citizen identity card verification using national data sources.

Practical applicability is demonstrated through successful implementation by more than 40 enterprises, including commercial joint-stock banks, e-wallets, consumer finance companies, e-commerce platforms, online recruitment platforms, insurance systems, and government agencies requiring online citizen information verification.

Conclusion

Anti-spoofing authentication is no longer merely a defensive solution but represents the initial step in building secure digital corridors for all transactions and online interactions. Investment in standards-compliant authentication technology not only helps enterprises avoid risks but also builds sustainable trust with users, partners, and regulatory authorities.

If your organisation seeks a comprehensive, rapid, secure, and legally compliant authentication solution, FPT eID represents a worthy consideration.