Credit card major Visa Inc. is poised to enhance its fraud-prevention capabilities by incorporating three new artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tools into its product suite for business clients, according to a Bloomberg report.
This move underscores the company’s commitment to leveraging advanced technology to bolster security within the financial transactions realm. Starting in the first half of this year, these tools will be made available to Visa’s clients, marking a significant step forward in the fight against digital fraud.
One of the forthcoming tools aims to augment Visa’s existing AI capabilities, specifically designed to identify and prevent fraud in transactions where the credit card is not physically presented.
This enhancement is crucial in today’s increasingly digital shopping environment, where such transactions are becoming more common. Another tool will be dedicated to ensuring the security of real-time account-to-account payments, a growing demand among consumers and businesses alike for instant financial transactions.
Furthermore, Visa intends to broaden the applicability of its Visa Advanced Authorization and Visa Risk Manager products to encompass payments that do not utilize Visa cards. This strategic move signals the company’s ambition to fortify the broader payments ecosystem against fraudulent activities, regardless of the payment method used.
Antony Cahill, Visa’s Global Head of Value-Added Services, emphasized the significance of these advancements in an interview with Bloomberg.
“This focus on driving bad actors out of the ecosystem is really important,” Cahill stated, highlighting the critical role of these technologies in maintaining the integrity and trustworthiness of the payment landscape.
In the preceding year, Visa’s efforts in fraud prevention proved to be remarkably effective, helping to intercept $40 billion in fraudulent transactions—a figure that nearly doubles the total prevented in the year before. This achievement is part of Visa’s broader strategy to invest in and harness the power of generative AI.
In October, the company announced a $100 million investment plan targeting companies at the forefront of AI development, aiming to reshape the future of commerce.
Visa’s initiatives are reflective of a wider trend in the financial services industry, where leading firms like Mastercard and PayPal Holdings Inc. are also embracing AI to enhance fraud detection and provide more personalized consumer experiences.
Mastercard has been marketing an AI-powered risk-detection tool to assist banks in identifying fraudulent money transfer attempts by their customers. Meanwhile, PayPal disclosed plans for its Venmo service to utilize AI for a tailored online shopping experience, showcasing the industry’s rapid adoption of AI technologies to improve operational efficiency and consumer safety.