The SWIFT Institute has opened its third annual student challenge, calling on Australian-based students to devise new ways of protecting personal information in an open banking environment.

The challenge, which is aimed at students in all levels of further education, addresses the issue of data privacy in an Open API environment. The challenge is available to any recognised university or further educational establishment based in Australia.

Entrants will be required to identify a solution that would help secure personal information in an open environment. Applicants must submit a written report of no more than 1,000 words and will be judged by financial industry practitioners.

Peter Ware, director of the SWIFT Institute, commented: “The issue of how to keep personal information safe in an open environment is increasingly a question that banks are trying to tackle as open banking becomes more prevalent. This competition will challenge students to provide innovative solutions to this global industry issue. We look forward to seeing the practical concepts that are offered.”

Leila Fourie, CEO of Australian Payments Network, added: “The use of open APIs in payments must be accompanied by a robust governance framework as well as appropriately strong authentication to ensure that only approved parties have access to data.

“As an industry, it is crucially important that we maintain the right balance between security, privacy and commercial incentives to ensure that customers continue to benefit from the burgeoning data economy. We encourage entrants in the Challenge to think about enabling the benefits of open data while at the same time helping consumers maintain privacy.”

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