Jingjok
Why your bank wants your face
sà-gaaen-bai-nâa
Since 2023 Thai banking apps ask you to สแกนใบหน้า before large transfers (50,000 baht in one go, or 200,000 in a day) and when you set up the app on a new phone. The reason is scams: call-centre gangs and fake apps with มัลแวร์ emptied many accounts, so the Bank of Thailand tightened the rules. Meanwhile the PDPA, in force since 2022, means almost every sign-up shows a box to ยินยอมให้เก็บข้อมูลส่วนบุคคล; you may decline marketing consent and still use the service. Practical habits: install apps only from the official store, never scan your face for a caller, and turn on notifications so you see every transfer.
Try this today
Open your banking app and check which transfers need a face scan and where notifications are set.
The words that carry it
- ข้อมูลส่วนบุคคลpersonal data
- ยืนยันตัวตนto verify identity
- สแกนใบหน้าto scan your face (biometric check)
Learn this in “Science, tech and AI” →
Your first 90 days of Thai
Culture cards in Jingjok are tied to the words that carry them, each ending in one thing to try today.
- WEEKS 1–2 · SURVIVEGreet anyone, pay, and order food and 7-Eleven exactly how you like it.
- WEEKS 3–6 · SETTLE INGet around by taxi, Grab and skytrain, find anything, and handle your landlord.
- WEEKS 7–12 · RUN YOUR LIFEPharmacy, bank, SIM and apps, how you feel, and a weekend away, all in Thai.
The first week is free.