What Is Strong Customer Authentication?

SCA is mandated by the Second Payment Services Directive (PSD2), which introduces laws to enhance the security of online payments in the European Economic Area. Starting on September 14, 2019, customers who live in this region may be asked to perform an identity verification step to make purchases online.

A customer can verify their identity with a password, a code delivered to a mobile device, or using biometric data, such as a fingerprint. This verification step applies to one-time purchases and recurring payments, such as subscriptions. The customer’s bank or credit card issuer determines when to request that the customer authorize the purchase by verifying their identity.

Starting on September 14, 2019, Checkout automatically integrates SCA into the payment experience for European customers. To learn more about SCA, go to https://stripe.com/docs/strong-customer-authentication.