(Screenshots of RetireSMART with facial recognition screens toward the left. Source: MassMutual.)

MassMutual (Springfield, Mass.) has enabled Apple iPhone X users to employ facial recognition as a secure password to information about their 401(k)s and other defined contribution savings plans through the company’s RetireSMART mobile app for retirement savings. The app is available for free at the Apple App Store for iPhones and Google Play for Android.

With Face ID, iPhone X unlocks only when the user is looking at it, according to Apple. The application is designed to protect against trickery by photos and masks. Each user’s Face ID information is encrypted and protected by Secure Enclave, so the data doesn’t leave the mobile device and is never backed up to iCloud or anywhere else, according to Apple.

“In today’s mobile world, smartphone users want to apply the latest technology to everything in their lives, including their retirement savings,” comments Tina Wilson, Leader of MassMutual’s Investment Solutions Innovation. “MassMutual is pleased to allow facial recognition for iPhone X users who already rely on the technology as part of a package of enhancements for our RetireSMART mobile app.”

MassMutual reports that it has also updated the RetireSMART mobile app dashboard for both Apple and Android smartphones, with the objective of providing users with more information to better manage their retirement savings. The new information includes retirement savings balances based on the “as of date” for one, seven, 30 and 90 days; rates of return based on year-to-date contributions by the saver or by employers that provide matching contributions; and retirement savings broken out by assets, including cash, stocks, bonds and overall asset allocation.

Existing functionality of the RetireSMART app included the ability for users to change how much they automatically contribute to their retirement plan each pay period as well as access information about their total account balance, balances by source and investment, vested balance by source, last contribution amount, asset allocation by investment and their personal rate of return. Smartphone users who use their thumb print as a secure password to access their smartphones can do the same to connect with their RetireSMART app, according to MassMutual.

Customer Security Top Priority

“Customer security has always been a top priority at MassMutual,” comments Durga Nagalla, Head of Mobile Technology in MassMutual’s Customer Experience group. “Biometric authentication using facial recognition or fingerprint scanning offer a balanced solution in keeping customers information secure while offering them convenient access to their accounts. Our goal is to stay ahead of the curve by continually integrating these latest security patterns in our mobile apps.”

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