VISA Investigating Location Based Payment Fraud Detection
- Posted: Dec 02, 2010 at 11:43 AM
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- 3 Comments
I’m travelling to the US next month for the Consumer Electronics Show. Whenever I travel to the US, my arrival experience is exactly the same. De-plane. Receive hearty interrogation from border official. Pick up case. Remember I have no cash. Try ATM. Bank refuses due to possible fraud detection. Ring bank. Shout.
Did you know that the US is apparently highly placed on most bank’s payment fraud hotlists? Frustratingly, that means I now have to let my bank know of my movements before I travel, or else, no cash. That may be set to change however – Hot Hardware reports that VISA are looking into the use of a location based service to help with fraud detection.
The idea is that on most occasions, your credit cards aren’t too far away from your phone – if they’re in close proximity during a transaction, chances are, it’s really you making it. If your card is making a transaction in New Orleans and you’re in San Francisco – maybe not.
Sure there’s still a lot to work out. What happens if your phone gets stolen, for example, or you leave it at a friend’s house by accident before you travel? But if it helps reduce the number of payment and cash withdrawal blocks I get when I travel, you can sign me up right away.
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Intermingling of other devices, body parts, or prints with the security of a credit card just gives the bad guys an enhanced need to do more than just pick a pocket.
This would be great, whenever I go up to Canada (which is where my family lives and is only a couple of hours away), my Visa stops working after I've used it once or twice in Canada. Then I call the bank, they reactivate it... yada yada. Pretty annoying, but I do appreciate the security. The concept you describe would be an improvement over the bank's suggestion that I call them before I travel.
This is really interesting news—I’m sure other companies will follow Visa’s lead and test out using location-based services for fraud detection. This could work pretty well, but again there would be an issue if someone steals your phone and your wallet. Do you have any idea when Visa plans to implement this?
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