Mastercard has enhanced its Consumer Fraud Risk (CFR) solution, aiming to provide stronger protection against real-time payment scams in the UK. Powered by advanced AI insights, the updated solution allows a growing number of UK banks to gain deeper visibility into potentially fraudulent transactions, enabling them to intervene before scams can be executed.

These scams, commonly referred to as Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud, often originate from deceptive websites, emails, text messages, or phone calls. In 2023, APP fraud cost UK consumers a staggering £460 million ($607 million).

Currently, UK banks voluntarily return funds to scam victims. However, starting on October 7th, new regulations from the UK’s Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) will require banks to reimburse all victims of APP fraud, except under specific conditions.

Since its introduction in early 2023, Mastercard’s CFR solution has assisted 11 UK banks in detecting and halting fraudulent transactions before funds are transferred out of victims’ accounts. By analyzing multiple transaction-related data points, the system generates a real-time risk score for the sender’s bank, helping them assess potential fraud.

The PSR, which collects data from 14 major UK banks, reported a 12% decrease in the total value of APP scams in 2023, with the figures dropping from £389 million ($514 million) to £341 million ($450 million).

The recent AI-driven upgrades to the CFR solution extend its benefits to receiving banks as well. These banks now receive the same real-time risk score within seconds, allowing them to detect when a payment is directed to a fraudulent or “mule” account, further enhancing their ability to prevent scams.

Mastercard’s ongoing innovation in fraud detection aims to reinforce the UK banking sector’s fight against payment fraud and safeguard consumers against financial losses.

“Fraudsters have long sought to deceive the consumer through scam websites and fictious deals. That’s why, at Mastercard, we are turbocharging our technology, providing banks additional lines of defence – helping them better identify and stop scams in their tracks,” said Johan Gerber, Executive Vice President, Security Solutions at Mastercard.

Early offline tests of the enhanced ‘inbound risk’ alerts have shown a 60% improvement, on average, in banks’ ability to detect high-risk mule accounts within their account base at an early stage.

Mastercard intends to roll out Consumer Fraud Risk to global markets within the year, broadening consumer protection and contributing to a more secure digital ecosystem for everyone.

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