A consumers sense of security and trust can be a funny even unpredictable thing especially when it comes to payments banking and commerce Maybe its the reputation of a brand that lowers the mental resistance to inputting payment and personal details on a mobile device to complete a transaction Maybe its more about convenience and the back-of-mind knowledge that fraudulent purchases would be refunded Maybe its a devil-may-care attitude hey everyone eventually gets hacked or perhaps its a series of digital bells and whistles all those ads and symbols that at least give the perception of security Maybe its just those two mimosas the consumer had at brunch which served to loosen up his natural conservative tendencies No matter the reason when it comes to banks and their mobile efforts financial institutions operate at an advantage as they have customer relationships that span years or decades generations in some cases and are often perceived as stable all-but-eternal institutions not the fly-by-night operators that regularly seem to pop up in the digital economy Trust Advantage Translating that trust advantage into mobile market share however is another matter entirely as was discussed in a recent PYMNTS interview with Gerhard Oosthuizen chief technology officer for Entersekt a South Africa-based FinTech firm that focuses on mobile authentication and app security software Part of the reason is the different ways in which consumers view security and the risks involved with using mobile apps to handle their finances from deposits to money transfers and other associated services Mobile banking can be a lot more secure than internet banking he said thanks in part to all the research and investment thats been put into the mobile channel in recent years to gain consumer loyalty and trust and also because each app is in its own sandbox But even a relatively high level of security does not mean a total level of security or that everyone involved in the development of mobile banking apps are on the same page when it comes to authentication and fraud prevention Banking customers he said tend to think all those apps need to be built by young cool kids straight out of university not an unreasonable assumption given that the young tend to be much more familiar with and comfortable within digital life than older generations Good UX vs Security That said Oosthuizen noted those younger developments often tend to focus on good UX and the consumer experience in terms of what works They dont necessarily have a deep security background They might want to innovate but take shortcuts on security And any security misstep in the development of mobile banking apps can backfire in the future which in turn can lead to financial and reputational damage to the brand and a loss of mobile customers Consumers too play a role in the wider mobile banking security picture Thats because for reasons that likely have to do with the deeper parts of human nature they feel as though pain must be associated with security he said That can translate into those types of consumers not completely trusting a well-built intuitive mobile banking app that is indeed secure but seems too easy to use or if you prefer too good to be true After all for many consumers the perception is that three locks on the door are better than one good lock Market Security What are banks to do to overcome all that For starters Oosthuizen said they need marketing to change those minds and perceptions And that marketing should build on the inherent advantages of legacy financial institutions Banks have that base of trust and the ability to engage with customers he added As well banks can do that marketing at places where customers manage their finances at ATMs or inside branches for instance The main ideal message at least in its most simplified form You can trust your bank and you can trust the banking app Oosthuizen said A lot of people worry about the big tech firms the Amazons and Facebooks but a lot of people still have trust in their banks Consumers might view banks as slow but at least they are secure That trust advantage goes only so far if a bank deploys a mobile app that is clunky he said Their mobile apps must be nimble and not prone to being out-of-date soon after release And that means old banks need to partner with FinTech to create innovation Oosthuizen noted If banks cannot get that right they will be disrupted In so many ways including for security the mobile app world is still the Wild West where experimentation is high and consumer loyalty is often fickle That may favor the younger players but the legacy financial institutions still have more than a few things going for them