Insights on eCommerce Fraud from MRC Singapore

MRC Singapore 2023 saw Laura Carruthers, Head of Risk & Fraud at Boku, and Shalini Khatwani, Director of Payments in APAC at Netflix delve into the topic of eCommerce fraud. The conversation provided an overview on eCommerce fraud prevention and laid out the challenges and strategies that shape the constantly evolving world of online payments. Here are some of the key takeaways from this exchange.

Understanding the Nuances of eCommerce Fraud

For those unfamiliar with the evolving world of eCommerce fraud, it has transitioned from a concern centered around chargebacks to a more sophisticated game involving social engineering and phishing scams. Fraudsters adapt to new security measures, manipulating victims through channels such as social media platforms.

In response to these challenges, the adoption of secure customer authentication, including multi factor authentication, biometrics, and device possession requirements, has become a game-changer. These measures significantly strengthen defenses against both authorized and unauthorized fraud, adding an extra layer of protection to less sensitive account identifiers like mobile phone numbers or email addresses.

Challenges in the Mobile Wallet Arena

Discussions also touched upon the specific challenges faced in the mobile wallet domain. While unauthorized fraud remains a concern, the incidence is relatively low due to robust security measures implemented by wallet issuers. A clear and user-friendly payment journey is crucial in mitigating risks associated with social engineering and phishing scams.

The recurring theme of collaboration between wallet issuers, merchants, and payment service providers emerged as a key takeaway. The ability to share insights and collectively strengthen protective measures is vital in this interconnected ecosystem.

Organized Account Reselling: A Complex Challenge

Insights have been shared surrounding the multifaceted challenge of organized account reselling, where services acquired through low-KYC payment methods are resold, negatively impacting revenue and customer retention for merchants. The lack of mandated data sharing hinders merchants from fully understanding the scope of the problem.

Laura expanded on the allure of account types with no KYC requirements for resellers. Balancing accessibility and risk management is crucial, and the creative exploitation of merchant product and charging loopholes by resellers adds complexity to the issue. Collaborative efforts, including the sharing of transaction-level fraud and abuse data, were highlighted as a solution to bridge the gap between wallet issuers and merchants.

How can businesses tackle the interconnected challenges like abuse, fraud, and reselling?

There is also an emphasis on the importance of post-sign-up monitoring as a critical aspect of fraud prevention. Engaging partners to share insights, investigate, and work on remediation emerged as a key strategy.

Laura underscored the pivotal roles of account monitoring and anomaly detection. Identifying clusters of abnormal behavior requires a concerted effort from stakeholders to collaborate, share findings, and implement preventive measures collectively.

Conclusions

In summary, when navigating the intricate landscape of eCommerce fraud and abuse, collaboration becomes our greatest asset. By fostering a united front, sharing data where privacy legislation allows, and embracing advanced monitoring strategies, businesses can fortify their defenses and ensure a safer, more secure eCommerce landscape for all. The insights shared in these discussions provide a roadmap for businesses seeking to stay ahead in the ever-shifting tides of eCommerce fraud.

If you would like to learn more about how Boku can help tackle these challenges for your business, get in touch.

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