Revolut launches AI-based scam detection feature

The new layer of security protection uses machine learning to determine if there is a high likelihood that the customer is making a card payment as part of a scam, and if so, decline the payment.

The customer is then prevented from performing other similar payments and sent through a scam intervention flow in-app. During this phase the customer needs to provide additional information about the transaction they were attempting, and also shown specific scam educational stories to prompt them to think in-depth before authorising the payment.

Revolut can also redirect the customer into a chat with a Revolut fraud specialist who will then ask them further questions in order to determine if they are being scammed.

Since launch, Revolut has observed a 30% reduction in the fraud losses resulting from card scams where money has been sent for investment opportunities.

David Eborne, head of fraud at Revolut, says: “A growing number of banks are increasingly restricting or heavily limiting the ability to make card payments to crypto and investment websites. With this advanced feature, rather than completely block those transactions, we ensure that customers who want to perform legitimate payments continue to do so, but also intervene to protect those who are being guided by criminals to make fraudulent ones”.

Across its UK customer base in 2023, Revolut found that 60% of all of its reported UK scam cases originated from just three sources: Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp. Additionally, 33% of the total value of all money lost to scams began on Meta platforms across the same period.

Revolut’s data showed that 59% of all money lost online came through investment scams in 2023, despite only representing 17% of the total number of cases.