Too many people in Finland use bank codes to verify their identities on countless websites and online services, according to the head of the Consumers' Union.
The union's secretary general, Juha Beurling-Pomoell, says there is an alternative verification system that can be safer in the long run, particularly in preventing scammers from emptying people's bank accounts.
"Banks were comparatively quicker to introduce electronic identity verification than authorities were, so many people still use them for everything," he told Svenska Yle, the Finnish public broadcaster's Swedish-language news unit.
The Consumers' Union recommends that people switch from bank codes to mobile certificates for everything besides logging into their bank accounts.
"Compared to bank codes, it is very unusual for fraudsters to misuse mobile certificates," he said.
He acknowledged that there are some risks with the certificates too, but noted scammers can't use them to access a prospective victim's bank account to steal their money.
"You should only use bank codes at your bank or if you have no other alternative," Beurling-Pomoell told Svenska Yle.
Online fraudsters are estimated to have stolen more than 84 million euros from people in Finland in various scams and phishing attacks in 2024, which reflected a 70 percent increase over the previous year.
Getting started
Mobile certificates are a service provided by mobile operators that work on all smartphones, according to public services and information portal suomi.fi. The certificates are encoded in the devices' SIM cards.
All three of Finland's major mobile service providers — DNA, Elisa and Telia — offer mobile certificates. However, the portal points out that people with devices using eSIMs (electronic SIMs) will need to check with their providers about using them.
While bank codes are effectively free-of-charge, mobile certificate service can potentially add a few euros to people's monthly cellphone bills, depending on the provider.
For example, DNA's fee is just over two euros a month, but it is currently offering 12 months of the service for free when customers sign up.
On the other hand, Telia offers the certificates free of charge to its customers, while Elisa charges subscribers 2.99 euros per month, with the first month free.
