Developing a new online business registration service using the Cryptopro myDSS solution to generate a qualified digital signature on a smartphone

«VTB, as a technologically advanced and customer-oriented bank, strives to provide the most innovative services and additional digital services, imposing the highest requirements on their functionality, convenience, and security. Online registration of a business with the subsequent opening of an account has recently become one of the most discussed, expected, and sought-after services in the Russian banking industry. The first certified solution in Russia CryptoPro myDSS allowed to implement this service in full. Now, any new entrepreneur can open a business simply by sitting at home and without installing heavy software on his computer».

Spartak Solonin, Head of Small Business Department, Senior Vice President, VTB Bank

The project background and objectives

Solving the ambitious and large-scale task of creating a new service for entrepreneurs—online registration of a legal entity, VTB Bank initiated a project to search for and implement a cloud-based solution that allows generation of a qualified digital signature without using a personal computer. For this purpose, VTB Bank studied and tested possible solutions for the mobile QDS generation presented in the Russian market.

They have identified the following criteria for choosing solutions and technologies:

• an ability of promptly providing the potential customer with a QDS tool without him visiting the Bank and without the need to install a complex hardware/software solution;
• ease of integrating the solution into the Bank’s business processes while eliminating the need to integrate the digital signature generation mechanism into information systems;
• minimizing of financial, organizational, and technical costs compared with previously used digital signature tools.

The detailed analysis of possible solutions resulted in the choice of the first Russian certified CryptoPro myDSS application based on SafeTech PayControl mobile authentication and digital signature platform and CryptoPro DSS technology for signing documents with legal effect directly on the smartphone.

Solution description

CryptoPro myDSS is a joint product of CryptoPro and SafeTech based on the CryptoPro DSS cloud-based digital signature system[1] and PayControl digital transaction authorization system.

Features of the CryptoPro myDSS software package:

• myDSS application shows the electronic document and generates an authorization for its signing on the CryptoPro DSS signature server;
• cryptographic authentication and secure channel between the application and the CryptoPro DSS server ensure that only a legitimate user can use the signature keys;
• a certified CryptoPro HSM stores non-extractable digital signature keys of users.

Project features

The complete procedure of electronic registration implies only one document signed in paper form: an application for the issuance of a digital signature key certificate. The next day after document preparation, the customer gets this documents delivered by the bank manager in person, and then all other papers are authorized with a cloud-based QDS using the myDSS mobile application on the user’s smartphone.

Results and business effect

VTB’s service has greatly simplified the online business registration process with the use of modern mobile technologies. On a special page of the bank’s website start.vtb.ru, an entrepreneur can prepare a necessary set of documents in a simple and user-friendly interface and get a qualified digital signature in the smartphone application. Then user authorizes the documents with one click and sends them to the Federal Tax Service of Russia. The user will get confirmation of the successful procedure completion by e-mail in 3-5 business days.

The implementation of CryptoPro DSS allowed VTB Bank to attain the following results:

• the average number of service users reached 500 potential customers per month in the first half of 2019;
• more than 95% of submitted applications result in timely and successfully business registration and a current account opened with VTB;
• none of the service users who have registered a new business and opened a current account with VTB have refused the Bank services.

[1] Notification Certificate by the Federal Security Bureau of Russia for the Specification 3 (CryptoPro DSS 2.0) DSS + myDSS with authentication and confirmation of digital signature generation operations using mobile applications for iOS and Android, issued on August 10, 2018 and is valid until August 10, 2021.