Banks Face Dual Authentication Crisis From AI Agents

Experts Advise Moving From Verifying Identities to Knowing Agent Intentions Suparna Goswami (gsuparna) • February 6, 2026

Financial institutions are rushing to deploy AI agents capable of autonomously initiating transactions, approving payments and freezing accounts in real time. But these innovations are creating a "dual authentication crisis" that traditional security frameworks cannot address, according to fraud prevention experts.

See Also: On-Demand | NYDFS MFA Compliance: Real-World Solutions for Financial Institutions

Banks must now verify two distinct elements simultaneously: intent - whether the user authorized the agent to act - and integrity - whether the agent is operating as designed. This represents authentication's most fundamental shift since digital banking began, moving beyond simple identity verification to validating delegated authority.

The industry is moving from "are you who you say you are" to "did you authorize this agent to do these things?" said David Barnhardt, strategic advisor for fraud and AML at Datos Insights ...