30% of consumers deal with card fraud – report

The report ‘Global Consumers: Losing Confidence in the Battle Against Fraud’ surveyed over 6,000 consumers across 20 countries. It reveals nearly 30% of global consumers have experienced card fraud in the past five years, classified as unauthorised activity on three types of payment cards (debit, credit and prepaid). 17% of respondents experienced more than one incident of fraud, compared to 13% in 2014.

In 2016, Mexico leads the way at 56%, followed by Brazil at 49% and the US at 47%. The US is the only country to remain in the top three list both years, due in part to being a laggard in the roll-out of EMV chip cards, so skimming and data breaches continue to be security challenges
European countries experience less card fraud than countries in the Americas, mainly due to earlier adoption of

EMV and other security advances. fraud rates for the UK were 29%, Italy 27% and Germany 18%.
The report also reveals that risky consumer behaviour is still widespread despite years of education by financial institutions and card issuers. 54% of global consumers exhibit at least one risky behaviour, such as keeping one’s PIN with the card, which puts them at higher risk of financial fraud, compared to 50% in 2014

25% of French, 29% of Spanish and 21% of Dutch respondents said they had left their smartphone unlocked in the last five years when not using it. 20% of Spanish and 18% of Italian consumers have used online banking or shopping without security software on a public computer. Also, 19% of Italian respondents admitted they had made a note of their pin and carried it with them or kept it with their card.

Consumer trust is improving, but loyalty is still lacking. 14% of global consumers lack confidence that their financial institution can protect them against fraud. 40% of consumers who received replacement cards as a result of a data breach or fraudulent activity use their replacement card less than they used their original card, resulting in lost interchange and interest revenue from decreased usage. 1 out of every 5 consumers changed financial institutions due to dissatisfaction after experiencing fraud.

Andreas Suma, global lead fraud and data, ACI Worldwide, said it is no surprise that there is a direct correlation between fraud rates and consumer trust and loyalty. As the data illustrates, for financial institutions it is more critical than ever to implement effective fraud prevention solutions.