Fiserv Rolls Out Enhanced Consumer Authentication Solutions

Fiserv, the global provider of financial services technology solutions, announced on Wednesday (Aug. 22) that it has rolled out two enhanced consumer authentication solutions, step-up authentication and identity verification, to mitigate card fraud within call centers.

In a press release, Fiserv said the two new solutions expand beyond knowledge-based consumer authentication that can be vulnerable to fraud. They use a five-digit code via text or email that is valid only during the call.

New for Fiserv credit clients is the ability to access real-time identity verification analysis that triggers protective actions to help mitigate account takeover, evaluating high-risk cardholder behavior within the interactive voice response (IVR) system. Layered, multi-factor authentication establishes the identity of the caller and passes information downstream to other fraud applications, Fiserv said in the press release.

“Personally identifiable information has become easier to find and exploit online due to the ubiquity of social media, and call center fraud has been increasing each year,” said Patrick Davie, vice president of product strategy and card services for Fiserv. “With these two solutions, fraud exposure for financial institutions can be reduced, cardholders’ personal data is safeguarded and account takeover can be prevented before transactions at the point of sale occur.”

According to Fiserv, fraud reached a three-year high of $16.8 billion last year, while the mean consumer cost of fraud more than doubled from 2016 to 2017 to $102 per incident. What’s more, Fiserv said that account takeover losses in the U.S. reached $5.1 billion in 2017, tripling over 2016.

Fiserv noted that consumers increasingly consider their financial institutions to be the party most responsible for safeguarding them against fraud, according to Javelin’s 2018 Identity Fraud report. The company noted that it piloted its new solutions in a five-month process with hundreds of clients participating. Those participating in the pilot have seen more than $2 million in fraud savings, noted Fiserv in the press release.