Friendly Fraud news and trends

Visa Wants to Eliminate Friendly Fraud Without Alienating Honest Consumers 
Fraud Prevention // January 09, 2024

Friendly fraud is a bit of a misnomer; first-party card misuse would be more accurate. That’s because, just like other types of fraud and cybercrime, friendly fraud is anything but friendly. And with more people conducting transactions online and purchasing digital goods, the opportunities for friendly fraud...

Amazon Sues ‘International Fraud Organization’ Over Phony Returns
Amazon // December 10, 2023

Amazon has sued an international group known as REKK for allegedly stealing millions via fraudulent returns. The suit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle, alleges that REKK — which it calls an “international fraud organization” — worked with Amazon customers and former employees...

Mastercard Targets Friendly Fraud With First-Party Trust Program
Fraud Prevention // October 23, 2023

Mastercard has launched a program designed to help merchants battle “friendly fraud.” The company’s First-Party Trust program, announced Monday (Oct. 23), employs “enhanced transaction insights,” artificial intelligence (AI), and risk modeling to combat friendly fraud, which occurs when a customer mistakenly or intentionally challenges a purchase. “As more of...

Visa: New Fraud Dispute Rules Will Save Merchants ‘Billions’
VISA // September 28, 2023

Visa says it has made it easier for merchants to fight so-called “friendly fraud.” The payments giant on Thursday (Sept. 28) announced an update to its dispute process for friendly fraud or first-party fraud, for card-not-present transactions. “This change could save small businesses over a billion dollars in...

Interviews & Exclusives
Visa: Compelling Evidence 3.0 Will Blunt ‘Friendly’ Fraud

April 17, 2023
Transaction disputes are massing across digital channels. Mike Lemberger, head of risk for North America at Visa, told PYMNTS that friendly fraud, also known as first-party fraud, accounts for as much as 16% of fraud disputes, as estimated by Merchant Risk Council. With a nod to how fraud has been evolving, Lemberger said, “The term […]

H&R Block Taps Ingo Money and Urban FT to Fight Mobile Check Deposit Fraud

November 28, 2022
Everything’s digital now, and paper check fraud hails from a bygone age, right?   Wrong.   Data finds the exact opposite, as the glaring problem with remote check capture is...

Retailers Brace for Friendly Fraud’s New Seasonal Surges

June 16, 2022
To quote that old song: “To everything there is a season.” And payments, there are seasons for disputes.   In an interview with Karen Webster, Verifi CEO Sara Craven said...

Report: Merchants Overestimate Their Own Dispute-Resolution Skills

May 16, 2022
The online shopping surge of the past two years heightened the risk of credit card fraud and drove many merchants to invest more heavily in anti-fraud measures. Merchants tend to...

Quick Reads
Amazon Sues ‘International Fraud Organization’ Over Phony Returns

December 10, 2023
Amazon has sued an international group known as REKK for allegedly stealing millions via fraudulent returns. The suit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle, alleges that REKK — which it calls an “international fraud organization” — worked with Amazon customers and former employees to carry out the fraud. “In this scheme, bad actors […]

Mastercard Targets Friendly Fraud With First-Party Trust Program

October 23, 2023
Mastercard has launched a program designed to help merchants battle “friendly fraud.” The company’s First-Party Trust program, announced Monday (Oct. 23), employs “enhanced transaction insights,” artificial intelligence (AI), and risk modeling to combat friendly...

Visa: New Fraud Dispute Rules Will Save Merchants ‘Billions’

September 28, 2023
Visa says it has made it easier for merchants to fight so-called “friendly fraud.” The payments giant on Thursday (Sept. 28) announced an update to its dispute process for friendly fraud or first-party...

Kount Launches Solution To Protect Businesses From Friendly Fraud

October 28, 2019
Digital fraud prevention company Kount is rolling out a complete solution to protect companies from criminal and friendly fraud, the firm announced in a press release on Monday (Oct. 28). ...