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Articles by Al Pascual
The Future of Scam Detection Combines What Consumers Want with What Bankers Need
Of all the risks that financial institutions (FIs) are managing today, none rely more on the intuition and efforts of an actual human being than that of scams. Whether that is pushing education on customers who may never even read it, or phone calls from a bank associate warning those customers that they may be lining the pockets of a scammer – today’s approaches to mitigating scams either don’t work or are far from cost effective.
The AI Data Gap Causes Problems For Small Financial Institutions
By Al Pascual, Cybercrime Expert, Founder, Inventor, and Advisor for BioCatch Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a crucial tool for financial institutions (FIs) in the fight against fraud for the last thirty years. Once the purview of card networks and payment processors decisioning transactions, AI is now delivering value in detecting malicious transactions of all types across a multitude of different organisations and institutions.
New Twists on Old Check Fraud Put Members at Risk
Check fraud remains a big problem for CUs. (Source: Shutterstock) It may seem counterintuitive in the digital age, but good-old paper checks have regained popularity with fraudsters. Naturally, there’s a new twist on this time-tested form of fraud, as criminals always find ways to make modern methods work to their advantage. Though check-writing has been on the decline overall, there are still a significant number of Americans who find value in check-writing.
Will Crypto’s Fall Stall the Future of Self-Sovereign Identity?
4 minutes Decentralized control of members’ digital identities may not impact U.S. credit unions tomorrow, but it’s coming. When cryptocurrency peaked in 2021, it was the future of money. Celebrities promoted crypto exchanges in high-profile ad campaigns and crypto chatter was inescapable. The frenzy bled into mainstream finance and raised the profile of self-sovereign identity, the form of decentralized identity authentication used in crypto transactions, as the coming paradigm.
It’s Time For Digital Driver’s Licenses
It’s the surest way to combat application fraud, which may reach $1 billion this year. Although today’s account-opening paradigm is guided by sound regulations and solid best practices, vulnerabilities remain. Indeed, for as long as they’ve existed, digital applications have been a veritable playground for identity criminals.
Rising check fraud puts credit unions at risk
If you don’t think the saying “Everything old is new again” applies to financial fraud, think again. Check fraud is on the rise again. While that might seem like stealing a horse and buggy in the digital age, criminals know when there is money to be made. They’re using modern tools to make old-school fraud work to their advantage. New digital twists are making check fraud more effective and harmful to credit unions and their members. Here’s what’s happening and what credit unions can do about it.
Rising Check Fraud Puts Credit Unions at Risk
5 minutes Here’s a cost-effective response to fraudsters leveraging digital banking and the dark web. If you don’t think the saying “Everything old is new again” applies to financial fraud, think again. Check fraud is on the rise again. While that might seem like stealing a horse and buggy in the digital age, criminals know when there is money to be made. They’re using modern tools to make old-school fraud work to their advantage.
Evolving Liability Causing Financial Institutions to Rethink P2P Fraud Approach
Evolving Liability Causing Financial Institutions to Rethink P2P Fraud Approach The widespread adoption of peer-to-peer (P2P) payment platforms has made it significantly more convenient for individuals to share money digitally. In 2022, 84% of consumers said they used a P2P service, and the popularity shows no signs of waning. As with most new tech services, P2P payments are not without risk.
7 banking tech predictions for 2023
Fear is a powerful motivator. Over the next year, the anxieties of bank strategists around digital disruption, economic uncertainty and frenzied fraud schemes will galvanize substantial technology implementations. Here are seven predictions regarding the future of banking that will compel decisive technology investments in 2023. Budgeting solutions come back en vogue: In the face of inflation and a slowing economy, consumers will be looking for guidance on how to make the most of their money.
5 steps to lower your risk of data breaches
Cybercriminals are targeting small businesses with tech-enabled cyberattacks, and their motives are often financial. (Photo: ©NicoElNino – stock.adobe.com) One less-obvious legacy of the pandemic is the legion of new fraudsters it trained. Having extracted more than $163 billion in fraudulent payments for in pandemic-era benefits, they’ve moved onto the private sector – and small businesses are a chief target. No business is too small.
Small Businesses Are at High Risk of Cyber Attacks. Here Are 5 Steps to Lower Your Risk of Data Breaches
From Data to Decisions Dynamically explore and compare data on law firms, companies, individual lawyers, and industry trends. Exclusive Depth and Reach. Law.com Compass includes access to our exclusive industry reports, combining the unmatched expertise of our analyst team with ALM’s deep bench of proprietary information to provide insights that can’t be found anywhere else.
Metaverse will move the goal posts for ID verification Original
The third version of the internet, Web3, is turning the paradigm of identity verification on its head. Today, we operate in a world of centralized services. For most online transactions, we go through an intermediary that, among other things, authenticates our legitimacy, citizenship, financial health and other relevant characteristics. Web3 changes all that.
Web3 to Move the Goal Posts for ID Verification
Source: Shutterstock The old frontier of identity verification lives in a world of centralized services. When consumers want something, they must go through an intermediary that, among other things, authenticates the consumer’s legitimacy, financial health and other relevant characteristics. The third iteration of the internet, Web3, is turning this paradigm on its head.
Inoculating Against the Long-Term Fraud Implications of Remote Working
Even after governments and the healthcare community succeed in stopping the spread of COVID-19, a long tail of financial crime is likely to follow. Already, cybercriminals are phishing fearful consumers under the guise of COVID-19 aid. And, they are expected to very soon begin targeting government relief programs. The effectiveness of their crimes will be greatly helped along by the tenuous security posture of the country’s largest-ever pool of remote workers.
Securing the Future of Cryptocurrency Wallets
Interest in cryptocurrencies is reaching a fever pitch, both for consumers and for fraudsters seeking new victims. As newer, less sophisticated users enter the market, the onus of safeguarding accounts increasingly falls on the creators of cryptocurrency wallets — which can either enable or prevent fraud. Join Javelin in an evaluation of the customer-facing fraud mitigation features of major cryptocurrency wallets and see how they compare against the fraud threats facing cryptocurrency investors.
Credit Scores in Digital Banking
Free credit scores have become a trendy digital banking bauble. But banks and credit unions can go further by augmenting and integrating digital tools that coach customers about how credit works and recommend specific steps they can take to improve their borrowing power – a benefit for both consumers and financial institutions.
13.1 Million Identity Fraud Victims but Less Stolen in 2015, According to Javelin
EMV Drives Changes in Fraud Types; New Account Fraud Doubles 18% of Fraud on U.S. Consumers’ Cards Committed Internationally Consumers Who Don’t Trust their Financial Institutions Significantly Increase their Risk of Fraud SAN FRANCISCO, February 2, 2016: The 2016 Identity Fraud Study released today by Javelin Strategy & Research (@JavelinStrategy), revealed that the number of identity fraud victims increased by three percent (13.1 million consumers) in the U.S. last year, but that the amount...
The Complex Evolution of Card Fraud in the US
Al Pascual, director of Fraud & Security and Kyle Marchini, research specialist, for Javelin Strategy & Research co-authored this article. Conventional wisdom indicates that card not present fraud will skyrocket as the United States shifts to EMV over the course of the next few years. Typically, this analysis is accompanied by analogies to balloons – as one end of the fraud “balloon” is squeezed, the rest expands.
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