Banks across India are bolstering their security measures with the introduction of a new safety feature called 'transaction confirmation,' as reported by a media house. This feature aims to combat unauthorized transactions by promptly alerting account holders to any unusual or suspicious activity in their bank accounts. Upon receiving such alerts, customers are empowered to either approve or reject the transaction.
According to the media report, major banks like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank have already integrated this fraud prevention measure into their systems. Similar systems have been adopted by other banks to fortify their defenses against fraudulent activities.
The mechanism behind this fraud prevention feature involves the establishment of a credit intelligence system. This system identifies transactions that deviate from the norm and promptly notifies the account holder. Transactions are only processed upon the confirmation of their legitimacy by the account holder.
Manish Agrawal, Executive Vice President of HDFC Bank's Credit Intelligence and Control Department, stated that the bank has implemented a comprehensive monitoring framework across all channels, including UPI, Net banking/mobile banking and credit and debit cards, to protect customers from potential frauds.
ICICI Bank, for instance, employs a proactive approach by sending SMS alerts to customers in cases where immediate confirmation is required for transactions, such as UPI payments. If customers cannot be reached, specific instructions are provided to address any concerns or disputes regarding the transaction.
Standard Chartered Bank has also deployed sophisticated fraud risk management tools equipped with detection and prevention capabilities to mitigate online and card fraud risks. These tools analyse various parameters such as device information, location, internet connectivity, merchant type, transaction velocity and value to monitor suspicious activities effectively.
Furthermore, the bank has implemented stringent controls at every stage of transactions, including login, beneficiary addition and transaction initiation, to ensure the security of customer accounts.
It's important to note that the transaction confirmation feature is selectively activated and not applied to all transactions across different channels like UPI, credit cards and debit cards.
Pradeep Janardanan, Director of Standard Chartered GBS, shed light on the use of geolocation and IP address monitoring by banks to prevent fraud. Geolocation helps banks compare the location of a transaction with the customer's usual location to detect suspicious activities. Meanwhile, IP address monitoring involves scrutinising the IP addresses associated with transactions, enabling banks to flag suspicious IP addresses for further investigation or verification.
In conclusion, these proactive measures implemented by banks underscore their commitment to enhancing security and safeguarding customer interests in an increasingly digitized banking landscape.
