Over the last half decade, rates of account takeover have multiplied significantly. According to a PYMNTS.com report, account takeovers jumped 300% in 2017, and have been rising ever since. The trend was particularly pronounced in the lending space. Lenders lost $4 billion from account takeovers last year, according to Javelin Strategy and Research.
In order to combat this type of fraud with innovative technology, lenders must learn what account takeover entails.
Online Lending Fraud: What Is Account Takeover?
Account takeover is a form of financial identity fraud. It’s when a fraudster uses a victim’s identity and financial accounts to fraudulently secure a loan and then steal the funds. Fraudsters apply for a loan in the victim’s name, transfer the funds into the victim’s account, withdrawal the money, and then disappear.
Account takeover is riskier than other forms of identity fraud, but it comes with several advantages for fraudsters who want instant gratification. The fraudster does not need to build a fake identity or financial infrastructure to commit the fraud. The fraudster is essentially taking over a person’s identity, pre-existing accounts, and credit history to illicitly funnel money into a safe haven.
Account takeover is facilitated like most other kinds of identity fraud. A bad actor obtains sensitive information, such as bank account numbers, usernames and passwords, and other key credentials from personal contacts, malware, phishing, or other violations of a victim’s privacy. The fraudster takes out a loan in the victim’s name, and routes the funds into the victim’s account.
Once the funds are in the victim’s account, the fraudster moves the funds into an intermediary account by circumventing bank security protocols. These circumvention methods include SIM swaps, associating new phone numbers with the bank account, SMS-grabbing malware, cloning phone identifiers, and other methods.
After the money is in the intermediary account, the fraudster cashes out the funds by making ATM withdrawals, purchasing cryptocurrencies, transferring funds to online payment platforms, or buying e-commerce goods, among other methods. The fraudster might try to hide the origin of the money by employing “mules,” or agents who transfer illegally obtained money, either wittingly or unwittingly.
Combating Account Takeover with Technology Solutions
Account takeover poses unique challenges to online lending, but novel technologies can help lenders fight back against this form of fraud.
ThreatMetrix by LexisNexis Risk Solutions provides data that detects suspicious behavior or compromised devices before fraudsters can initiate account takeovers. ThreatMetrix’s Digital Identity Network analyzes millions of transactions across billions of devices for thousands of leading global businesses. This data allows organizations to verify that customers are who they say they are.
RSA Web Threat Protection uses behavioral analytics to separate fraudulent activity from legitimate transactions. The solution tracks a large variety of fraud threats, such as new account fraud, fraudulent money transfers, password guessing, credential harvesting, mobile and web session hijacking, and other behaviors that suggest potential account takeover attempts.
Fraud.net has an award-winning AI-powered suite of enterprise tools to manage risk for clients such as online lenders. Fraud.net’s AI, analytics, and data mining platform can quickly identify common schemes and attack methods, including account takeover. The suite’s ‘early-warning’ monitoring, powered by multi-dimensional risk analytics, helps to uncover account takeover fraud before it happens.
Account Takeover: A Manageable Issue With the Right Technology
Account takeover is one of the most expensive and fastest growing forms of online lending fraud. However, with the right solutions, lenders can combat account takeover and minimize the negative impact it has on profit margins, platform security, public image, and the customer experience.
Author:
Tim Dubes, Vice President of Marketing at Ocrolus.
About Ocrolus:
Headquartered in NYC, Ocrolus is an intelligent automation platform that analyzes financial documents with over 99% accuracy. By eliminating manual reviews, Ocrolus empowers companies to reinvest human capital and automate processes with industry-leading speed and accuracy. Ocrolus services hundreds of customers in the financial sector and analyzes millions of data points every day. The company has raised over $30 million in venture capital, backed by Oak HC/FT, FinTech Collective, Bullpen Capital, and QED Investors, among others. For more information about Ocrolus, visit www.ocrolus.com.
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