UK banks, including NatWest, are the first in the world to implement new AI tech from Mastercard to address scams.

The technology is designed to in identify and prevent money being sent to fraudsters in real-time.

The move comes after UK Finance revealed that fraudsters in the UK were responsible for almost 1.4 million thefts during the first half of 2023 – the equivalent of one every 12 seconds.

Nick Elliot, head of payment fraud at NatWest said that impersonation scams which coerce people into sending money in good faith require "no security breach or hack".

“As the sophistication of scams has progressed, so has our real-time monitoring and prevention of fraud," he continued. "Together with Mastercard, we are using the power of AI to identify payments to fraudsters and stop them before money is lost."

The head of payment fraud said that the new technology would complement its existing programme of consumer education and guidance on precautions to take.

“Scammers are exploiting new technologies, making their deception and impersonation scams increasingly difficult for consumers to recognise,” said Chris Reid, executive vice president of identity solutions, Mastercard. “Building on our innovations in AI and key partnerships, we are supporting financial institutions with insights to better detect and prevent scams, while helping consumers learn how to spot them."

Mastercard added that it is partnering with the Global Anti-Scam Alliance to share knowledge and create joint actions to advocate for safer ways to transact and protect consumers.

Jorij Abraham, managing director, Global Anti-Scam Alliance, said: “Mastercard’s industry expertise and innovative technology will support our global network’s commitment to stopping scams and protecting consumers. We look forward to our continued collaboration in educating and empowering consumers worldwide.”

At the end of last year, Mastercard’s executive vice president, cyber and intelligence, Mastercard talked to FStech about how the company has been using machine learning-powered digital identity technology to address Synthetic ID fraud by validating a person through analysing multiple data points, such as name, email, and device IP address.

“The Federal Reserve now considers Synthetic ID fraud – where a malicious actor creates a fake persona to apply for a loan, open an account, or make a purchase – the fastest-growing financial crime in the US., costing banks billions of dollars per year,” he said at the time. “To prevent synthetic ID fraud, businesses need to validate that multiple identity elements are valid and linked to a genuine person.”

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