Today’s consumer expects both security and a frictionless customer experience (CX). Whether it’s keyless cars or 1-click checkout, user experience is key. The fact that “a mere one-second delay in page load time in a browsing scenario, yields a 16% decrease in customer satisfaction and a 7% loss in conversions,”¹ illustrates that users have very little tolerance for anything other than lightning-quick and highly slick digital experiences.

It is essential to address these CX expectations during digital customer onboarding and activation to drive home the message: This is the customer’s first experience with your product, so you need to make it top-notch. Also, let’s not forget that customer acquisition is expensive. In banking, the cost is estimated at between $100 and $200 per acquisition.² And insurance companies are paying as much $900³to acquire a customer! So, the last thing you want to do is lose them at the final hurdle after a substantial financial investment.

Previously, a trade-off was required between security and user experience. But now with Frictionless Authentication, that trade-off is no longer needed. And unlike some other methods, such as Passkey Authentication, it can be used during registration.

Frictionless Authentication not only improves CX — drop off rates for One Time Password (OTP) authentication can be as much as 22%⁴— but benefits security, as well. Unlike SMS OTP and similar methods, the absence of an OTP, make it phishing proof.

What is Frictionless Authentication

Frictionless Authentication replaces SMS OTP when you use your mobile handset. Your mobile operator always knows your mobile number, which is secured using advanced cryptography installed on your SIM, or increasingly eSIM.

Syniverse has partnered with mobile operators to enable companies to use this to authenticate new and existing customers.

With a customer-provided mobile number, the enterprise can seamlessly verify that this number belongs to the mobile handset being used. This avoids the multiple steps and delays in alternative methods.

Before and after screen flow comparison when replacing SMS OTP with Frictionless Authentication in a mobile app

Compared to using SMS OTP in a mobile app, the CX is 2x simpler, with half the steps.

How does it work?

Frictionless Authentication authenticates the mobile number using mobile data sessions. There is an easy-to-use API that enterprises adopt to authenticate their mobile app and web users.

It works in 3 key steps

The enterprise provides the mobile number for the customer they want to authenticate, and the API returns a unique URL

The enterprise mobile app installed on the end user phone then connects silently to the URL, which the operator uses to capture the end user phone number

The operator and enterprise provided phone numbers are then used to confirm the match

Ready to learn more about Frictionless Authentication? Contact a Syniverse expert.

Or if you would like to learn about optimizing your Mobile Identity and Authentication strategy, please download our white paper, “Cracking the Security Trilemma.”