PalmPay, a fintech innovator, has announced the launch of its Wallet Safe Workshop, a monthly campaign for payment security awareness training to help customers improve their overall security knowledge, and learn about how to spot and avoid e-scammers.
The penetration of the internet and digital payment in Africa has significantly increased in recent years. A number of potential issues, including fake news, leakage of personal information, and financial scams have emerged as a result of this rapid expansion in connectivity.
According to the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) report, the total number of fraud attempts in Nigeria has grown by 186 percent from 2019 to 2020.
However, mobile fraud attempts jumped 330 percent year over year, while web and point of sale fraud attempts rose 173 percent and 215 percent respectively, this has become a top priority for financial institutions to guarantee the security of user transactions.
Read also: ESET set to protect IoT devices against cyber threats
With the launch of the Wallet Safe Workshop, PalmPay will use both online and offline channels, including the app, social media, official websites, and printed materials, to publicise and expose examples of social media and telecom fraud, as well as how to spot fraudulent behaviour.
Similarly, the company will improve anti-fraud warning education for vulnerable groups such as students and senior citizens, and promote legal provisions related to the proper use of mobile wallet accounts, to effectively raise people’s awareness of combating and managing telecom fraud and cybersecurity.
“The expanding use of digital payments brings new risk and security concerns.” said Chika Nwosu, managing director at PalmPay, “PalmPay is committed to delivering users with a secure and trustworthy digital payment experience.”
Nwosu further stated that the company will continue to optimise its risk control procedures and look forward to collaborating with law enforcement and cybersecurity partners to prevent fraud and ensure payment security.
Furthermore, If a person suspects that they or someone else has been a victim of fraudulent activities, they should contact PalmPay customer service via in-app chat, email, social media, or call centre. The company will investigate and freeze accounts to avoid additional loss due to fraudulent activities and to maximise the chances of tracing and retrieving funds.
In addition, keeping users safe from fraudsters is not an easy task, therefore the right fraud monitoring and know your customer (KYC) approaches are key to the current rise in fraud attempts, the company stated.
With robust anti-fraud and KYC systems, the fintech company protects its users from fraud and unauthorized use with various protective measures, including real-time risk control and abnormal behaviour detection, which automatically monitors, flags, and freezes high-risk transactions and accounts.
