The Problem

Authorized Push Payment (APP) fraud involves deceiving customers into voluntarily sending money to accounts controlled by criminals.

It is a growing global problem, but is most acute in countries with advanced banking systems offering real-time payments for retail customers - like the UK. The ability to move money instantaneously makes it highly attractive to fraudsters.

Victims of APP fraud suffer not only financial loss but, also profound emotional and psychological distress. It is often the most vulnerable people in our society who are worst affected - cruelly targeted by criminal scammers. A common scenario involves individuals being misled by seemingly legitimate communication from their bank or another trusted entity like the police, prompting them to transfer funds under the guise of securing their accounts or confirming their identity.

According to the 2023 UK Finance Fraud Report, fraud losses in the UK continue to run at over £1bn each year, with APP fraud accounting for around £0.5bn. The report also highlights the growing importance of co-operation and data sharing:

“More can be done to prevent fraud, including easier data-sharing...”

The existing approaches for customer matching and data sharing between UK banks generally rely on using an intermediary; the best-known examples are the credit reference agencies (CRAs). But these legacy approaches are often siloed, expensive, and require the capture and storage of sensitive customer data for a second time - creating data risks, third-party reliance, and an additional data target for cyber-attack.

The technology which under-pins these approaches is old, and often relies on over-night batch processing of data. This is a major drawback in fraud cases where fast action and co-operation is vital to protect customers.

Seiza offers the industry a new approach to matching customers, sharing data and helping combat fraud. Our solution works peer-to-peer in real time...