Mastercard has assembled strategic set of capabilities to transform the fight against scams.
Scams are a global enterprise because of the vast amount of money to be made from them.
$486B
In 2023, scams and bank fraud schemes cost $486 billion globally1
That’s more than the GDP of most countries, and certainly enough incentive to gather gifted cybercriminals to strategize how to get a piece of it.
Putting a stop to scams comes down to one thing — identity. Knowing who’s on
each side of an interaction is key. Mastercard has spent more than 10 years using
AI — combined with our unique, network-wide view — to detect threats, identify vulnerabilities and prevent fraud at scale.
We recently announced Scam Protect, a suite of specialized solutions, powered by cutting-edge AI technologies, that help identify and prevent scams.
Prevent fraudulent accounts to keep fraudsters out
This rigorous data analysis, paired with behavioral capabilities, assists in verifying that people are who they say they are throughout the life cycle of an account. Behavioral analysis can assess physical interactions across devices to identify any unusual behavior, such as hesitating while typing or interacting with the website or app.
Mastercard’s identity insights help separate bad actors from legitimate customers, assessing potential risk up front without adding friction that could lead to customer abandonment. Using machine learning data analytics, personal data elements are analyzed for their links and duration of use.
Stopping scams at pivotal points in the customer transaction flow
With the goal of catching fraud at the earliest possible point in the customer transaction flow, Mastercard’s identity insights for transaction risk passes every transaction through a series of gateways, each configured to detect fraud patterns particular to that stage in the sequential flow. Catching fraud during the payment can prevent the loss of the transaction and the subsequent charge-back fees. Also, the earlier in the transaction flow scams are prevented, the lower the chance of false declines.
Open banking: Enabling the evolution of value while preventing scams
Consumer Fraud Risk leverages AI capabilities and data from account-to-account payments to stop scams
Open banking has enabled financial institutions to better serve their customers in today’s digital world. With consumer consent, open banking lets consumers and businesses safely share their financial data — with their permission — to access innovative financial experiences.
Open banking is poised to adapt as more specialized and targeted services come online. It can also make applying for loans and getting credit approvals more seamless.
It is incumbent upon the financial industry to ensure the security of the open banking system. Mastercard is taking a lead role in this effort, promoting industry collaboration, consumer education and the establishment of engagement protocols for combating scams and securing the open banking data system.
One of the best mechanisms for preventing scams is stopping cybercriminals from opening accounts on e-commerce marketplaces and financial institutions.
This inhibits scammers from selling bogus goods on online platforms and removes their ability to receive fraudulent funds from their activities.
What measures can help you protect yourself? We’ll take you through solutions that empower you and your business.
At the beginning of — and throughout the scam life cycle — Mastercard’s identity insights are a front line of defense against scammers.
Mastercard’s commitment to protecting the payments ecosystem
With the expected growth of and innovation in digital payments, we will continue to invest in enhanced security measures. As a leader in digital payments security and enablement, we will also continue to engage key partners to support and secure all value movement flows in the global payments ecosystem.
According to the FBI, across the U.S. people lost $12.5 billion to internet scams in 2023 alone2
$12.5B
This is a nearly 10% increase in complaints received, and represents a 22% increase from 2022 in losses suffered.
Specific to real-time account-to-account payments, Mastercard’s Consumer Fraud Risk solution provides banks with the intelligence to help detect and prevent payments to scammers. Now live in the UK with 10 large banks, Consumer Fraud Risk leverages AI and Mastercard’s unique view of account-to-account transactions, to help banks intervene in real time and stop a payment to a scammer before funds are sent.
Consumer
Mastercard
Account Opening API
Scammer
Machine learning-powered data analytics
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Behavioral biometrics
1. https://www.nasdaq.com/press-release/nasdaq-releases-first-global-financial-crime-report-measuring-the-scale-and-human
2. https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2023_IC3Report.pdf
Combating the global scam industry
EVOLUTION OF FRAUD
This data is then matched against patterns of good customer and bad actor behaviors to determine both parties’ probability of fraud in the ensuing payment. In a person-to-person transaction, this protects good consumers and shuts down scammers before any money is transferred.
Combating the global scam industry
EVOLUTION OF FRAUD
Learn more about Scam Protect
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