Fraud is increasing globally – across all sectors. The Association for Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) says in its 2018 Report to the Nations global study on occupational fraud and abuse that global fraud losses could amount to as much as USD4 Trillion in 2017 alone, with 53% of victims recovering nothing and 32% making only a…

Data has been described as ‘the new gold’, proving to be a priceless resource for businesses and a key to unlocking personalised services and online convenience for consumers. But as an increasingly digital market trades personal information in return for convenience, some entities have exploited consumer data – and even used it to commit wide-scale…

As every brand moves into the online space, security vs usability are increasingly pitted against each other. Online retailers and services striving to protect customer data and transactions tend to require customers to set ever-more complex passwords, and to change them regularly. Meanwhile, information security experts warn that consumers should not use the same (easy-to-remember) passwords…

Chat banking, allowing users to transact simply and easily on the messaging apps they prefer, is likely to become the next big thing in banking across Africa. The continent’s highly mobile-enabled population already embraces messaging apps and an emerging younger consumer base is more comfortable texting than speaking on their devices.  GSMA’s The Mobile Economy…

Open Banking is revolutionising the financial services landscape across the world, and presents opportunities for transformation and financial inclusion throughout Africa too. However, the African markets should use the successes and failings from the experiences of other markets to leapfrog directly to the next era of Open Banking. Open Banking, in which banks share certain…

Because SIM swap fraud has been so prevalent across Africa in recent years, African consumers are well aware of the potential for financial losses during unsecured financial transactions.  But the incidence of SIM swap fraud is increasing both across Africa and internationally, and fraudsters are finding new ways to profit from this particular mode of…

Robust ID and authentication are central to the development of a digital economy. However, traditional systems of ID are insufficient to meet the needs of a digital economy. As the default ID system for many digital services, email and password provide a very weak system, which is easy to exploit.To protect against users when their…

Most experts agree the phone can provide digital identity and authentication better than any other technology. The phone adds an element of ‘something you have’ (the handset) to the ‘something you know’ (a password or social media log-in). This means any criminal that has stolen someone’s PIN or password also needs that person’s device. There…

In any functioning society, many everyday transactions only work when a person can prove who they are. Reliable proof of identity is the basis of trust. So a consumer wanting to open a bank account, or start a job, or hire a car must be able to answer this question: can you prove who you…

Digital innovation is accelerating across the African continent, driving transformation in almost every industry, including energy, agriculture, transport, banking and education. Transformation that has been largely enabled by mobile technology. In 2017 almost half of the African continent was subscribed to mobile services, equivalent to nearly half a billion people, according to the GSMA. Given…