Counterfeit Card Fraud Drops 66%
Visa reports that counterfeit fraud is dropping like a rock. According to a recent press release, Visa reports that chip technology is the reason for the drop. One of the leading factors was that chip technology is extremely effective in reducing counterfeit fraud, which was the leading type of fraud in the U.S. at the […]
International Fraud Awareness Week
Hundreds of organizations from around the world are banding together to educate and spread fraud awareness this week during International Fraud Awareness Week. More than 350 organizations (including PointPredictive) are spending this week holding training seminars, educating employees or inviting fraud experts to speak to their customers about the impacts of fraud and how to […]
FBI Reports Home Closing Wire Fraud Is Spiking
There is explosive growth in wire fraud and it is coming from the most unlikely places – home closings. The FBI is reporting an explosive increase in wire related fraud where hackers infiltrate real estate agents email accounts, send fake emails and convince homebuyers to wire hundreds of thousands of dollars to their accounts with […]
Data Breach Index Is Going Off A Cliff in 2017
Poor internal security practices are taking a toll. Gemalto tracks data breaches across the globe each day, and they are raising the warning flag. The Gemalto Breach Index was released this week and it points to a massive uptick in breaches. More data was stolen the first half of 2017, then the entire previous year. […]
1.4 Million New Phishing Sites A Month Fuel Fraud Epidemic
There are plenty of Phish in the Sea. According to Webroot, there are about 1.4 million new phishing sites created by fraudsters each and every month. And each of those sites is designed to cleverly steal valuable personal and banking information from you. And the emergence of Phishing sites does not appear to be slowing down anytime […]
Synthetic Identity Fraud Losses Are $6 Billion Annually
Synthetic identity fraud is large. The Auriemma Consulting Group completed analysis which suggests that losses due to synthetic identity fraud topped $6 billion dollars last year. The study found that Synthetic identity theft, a form of application fraud in which criminals use fake personas to abuse credit, is responsible for 5% of charged-off accounts and up to 20% […]
Money Mule or Advanced Fee Fraud Scam? You Decide.
I was reading an interesting question posed on the Scam board on Reddit. A user there had recently engaged with someone online who he felt was trying to scam them. The scammer was posing as a girl out of the UK and soliciting Korean’s to partner in a scam with them. The question is posed, […]
Card Fraud in Europe Is Higher Than Ever
FICO has just released their new card fraud study in Europe and the news looks grim. Card fraud losses across 19 countries that FICO monitors have hit a new high of 1.8 Billion Euros. The primary culprit? Card Not Present which had one of the most dramatic increases in all of history as fraudsters shifted […]
I’m On TV Talking About Auto Lending Fraud
I am not a guy that likes to be in front of the camera. I like to be behind it but Becky Chernek does a great job on her show. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FharivqtkAY
Auto Loan Fraud Accelerating at Credit Unions
Peter Strosniak wrote a great article on Auto Lending Fraud and how it impacts Credit Unions. Credit Unions are often the target of sophisticated fraudsters looking to take advantage of the “friendlier” customer approach that credit unions are known for. You can read the article here – Auto Loan Fraud Accelerating at Credit Unions. “What […]
Wire Fraud is Surging in US and Now Over $20 Billion
Wire Fraud is the largest and single most damaging financial fraud in the US today. And according to the FBI’s latest reports, business related email losses are accelerating due to Business Email Compromise – the scourge of fraud prevention managers everywhere. Reports of wire fraud to the FBI and local law enforcement agencies has doubled […]
Cyber Mortgage Fraud Soars Down Under
There’s a new fraud emerging – Cyber Mortgage Fraud – where a new breed of sophisticated fraudsters are manipulating authentic digital applications to defraud unsuspecting lenders. The fraud is on the rise, tracking close to $1 Billion a year according to Connective, a leading mortgage service provider in Australia. Paul Palmer, Head of Compliance for connective […]
Mortgage Fraud Soars in Canada As Volumes Increase
What lending volumes increase, fraud rates increase. We have seen that time and time again here in the US. And now, Canada’s mortgage boom is leading to a boom of another type – mortgage fraud. According to Equifax, who analyzes fraud trends in Canada, reported this week a massive increase of mortgage fraud of 52% […]
The Absurdity of Home Improvement Lending Fraud
Could your plumber or home repair guy be behind the next big lending implosion in the US? If you look at the fastest growing loan type here in the US called Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE loans, that could be the case. PACE loans, set up by the government and are designed to help […]
It’s Back! Mail Forwarding Fraud Sky Rockets in Canada
Remember mail forward fraud from back in the 1980’s? It’s a pretty low-tech fraud that appeared to have all but disappeared as fraudsters favored more advanced techniques like cyber-fraud. But it is back. In a big way up in Canada. Fraudsters are locating individuals names, phone number and current address and requesting that all mail […]
False Declines for Fraud Cost Online Merchants Billions
It happens to everyone. You go to a website and find something you want to buy. You type in your credit card number, personal details, and shipping address and click submit. Then you get the message, “We were unable to complete your transaction, please call your issuing bank” You probably got declined because something about […]
Is Fraud on Square A Problem? Not Yet, But It Could Be.
Take any card number. Type it into your computer. Get funds the next day! Wow. Well, I just received an interesting email from Square, that advised me I could do just that. The subject of the email said, “Your Computer = Your Payment Terminal.” They promised me that I could type in any card number […]
Buy Online, Pick-Up In Store Is Pushing Fraud Way Up
Black Fraud Day (Friday) was a big success for online retailers this year. Consumers flocked to their computers to shop this year pushing sales to over $3 Billion. That’s a 15% increase over last year. But consumers aren’t the only ones flocking to big internet sites like Amazon, Macy’s, eBay and Best Buy to […]
Retailers Brace for Millions of Fraud Attacks
The Friday after Thanksgiving is a great day for shopping. It’s also an awful day for fraud. As shoppers flock to retailers to snap up huge discounts on Christmas gifts, they create the perfect cover for fraudsters looking to hide. Black Fraud Day Not Black Friday Black Friday is so bad that Fraud Managers across the world refer […]
10 Hot Spots for Auto Lending Fraud in the US
Auto Lending Fraud does not get a lot of attention here in the US. If you consider that the fraud rate is about 50 basis points and there are close to $1 trillion in loans, the losses mount up pretty quickly. After doing some research and analysis of loan portfolio’s we were able to determine […]
40,000 Compromised Accounts at Tesco in 24 Hours
Tesco experienced a significant online fraud breach over the weekend with over 40,000 fraud attempts of customer accounts through their Online Banking channel. Tesco admits that they stopped about 50% of the fraud attempts but 20,000 customer accounts appear to have been compromised with a fraud loss. Customers that had fraud noticed withdrawals from their […]