GSMA today officially launched Mobile Connect, mobile-based authentication for 800 million consumers across India. Six Mobile network operators (MNOs) – Aircel, Bharti Airtel, Idea, Tata Teleservices Ltd, Telenor and Vodafone have announced commercially availability of Mobile Connect .
Mobile Connect solution enables customers to create and manage a digital universal identity via a single login. The service simply and securely authenticates users, enabling them to digitally confirm their identity and their credentials and grant safe online access to mobile and digital services. Mobile Connect works by employing the user’s unique mobile number, combined with a unique PIN for more secure use cases, to verify and grant online access.
As Mobile Connect is rolled out in India, it will be commercially used by different sectors such as commerce, finance and banking, health services, media and entertainment and travel and hospitality. Business-to-business Mobile Connect services have been deployed by several companies, including mXpresso that helps to prevent fraud installations and fake application downloads.
Now there are 42 operators in 22 countries around the world who have implemented Mobile Connect, making it available to nearly 3 billion customers.
At the launch, Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA, said:
India is already the world’s second-largest mobile market and as the country enters a new phase of mobile industry growth that will unlock far-reaching social and economic benefits, it is critical that consumer security is ensured at all times. Today’s launch marks the culmination of a year-long collaboration amongst the Indian MNOs to deliver a single, intuitive and secure mobile-based authentication solution that enables hundreds of millions of consumers to safely and seamlessly access online services on their mobile devices without worrying about privacy or passwords. We are proud to be celebrating this significant milestone here today.
With Mobile Connect, mobile operators are fulfilling an important role in the digital identity space, giving users control over their own data and enabling Indian consumers, businesses and governments alike to interact and access online services in a convenient, private, and trusted environment.