RBI’s recent announcement allowed entities registered with it to use Video-based customer KYC (V-CIP)solution. That meant instead of sending agents to the customer’s address, now REs could verify the customer’s identity remotely via a recorded video call.
RBI defined how V-CIP (video-based customer identification process) should be done, we have summarized the circular in our article here.
As such, as a RE under RBI, you would have 2 choices
- Build a compliant V-CIP solution yourself
- Get a third-party provider like Veri5Digital to give you their pre-built tech
In case you are contemplating option (2) this article is for you.
Things you must consider before buying V-CIP software for your company
Check if the V-CIP vendor has the following features mandated by RBI
RBi in its circular defines how V-CIP needs to be done by the REs and through this definition RBI also mentions the features that a V-CIP software should have. As a RE the very first thing you must do is check if the service provider for V-CIP has the following features,
a. Live Video Call between the customers and the agent of the RE
b. Video recording
c. Image capture of the customer and the documents live during the call
d. Capture the live location of the customer within India
e. Capture the agent’s id and the DSCs id (if involved)
You can also read more about these in our post here.
Check for end-to-end encryption i.e. during and after V-CIP transaction
End-to-end encryption is a feature and should be a part of the list above. Having said that security, especially when it comes to personal data of the customers that includes financial and identity information, it becomes extremely important that it is kept safe.
Before you make a decision on whom to choose for V-CIP make sure that the vendor has some type of encryption implemented, encryption itself needs to be both when the data is stored in the database and while it is in transit.
This would usually make sure that most threats to this sensitive data is taken care of.
Ease of implementation
Let’s assume the vendor or SI (system integrator) that you choose, makes both the points above, the next thing you might want to look at is ” how easy” is it for you to integrate the services into your existing system.
Do they have an SDK for web, iOS, and Android or is it a Msite that can integrate with all of them.
If there is an SDK, what is the size that would add to your existing application?
Ideally, a couple of MB’s should be max.
Availability of APIs and platform compatibility
APIs allow you to build your own system while your system integrator takes care of the backend infrastructure. In case you are looking at building your own UI, API would allow you to customize the system in accordance with your requirements.
Usually, APIs also mean that you would be able to add V-CIP into any platform or OS of your choosing, though it makes sense to check just in case.
Though there are many more things that you can look at before you choose your software vendor, things mentioned above would give you a glimpse of what you should look at, as the bare minimum before you make a decision.
That’s all folks!
