The banking industry lost a staggering N12.2 billion to electronic payment fraud between January and June of 2023, according to digital commerce company Interswitch.
Credible News Nigeria reports that the affected banks, including First Bank, Guarantee Trust Bank, Access, First City Monument Bank, Sterling, Wema, and Ecobank.
Suzan Fasipe, head of retail payments at Interswitch, said during the Techconnect 3.0 conference in Abuja that N14.3 billion of the N35 billion in attempted fraud detected in 2022 was actually lost.
She said that in 2022, POS, web, and mobile platforms would be used to conduct 58% of fraud losses, or N8.3 billion.
The majority of POS, Web, and mobile platform frauds According to a research by Fasipe, POS and web fraud would account for 58% of fraud losses in 2022, or N8.3 billion.
According to her, 37% of banks were victims of ransomware attacks between 2021 and present.
Additionally, 93% of banking-related fraud, according to the company, was committed online.
Interswitch also said chargeback fraud could occasionally go unnoticed by banks for six months.
This, it said, happens when a customer uses their own credit card to make an online transaction and then asks the issuing bank for a chargeback after obtaining the goods or services.
When a chargeback is accepted, the financial transaction is cancelled, and the consumer is reimbursed for their money. Depending on the payment method used, the merchant may also be held responsible when a chargeback occurs.
Fasipe added that 96.2 percent of electronic payment fraud was caused by corporate fraud, which is the result of lax internal controls.
She added that in 2021, fraud involving their customers and workers cost four banks N1.77 billion.
At the event, Fasipe gave useful insights on bolstering current solutions to reduce fraud events, protecting consumers’ sensitive data, and navigating new market trends.
Stakeholders at the event examined financial inclusion initiatives and the crucial part regulators play in fostering digital financial inclusion.
The development draws attention to the growing security issues facing the banking sector as it works to strengthen the digital payment infrastructure.
Report had earlier pointed out that bank customers in Nigeria lost a total of N1.17 billion in the second quarter of 2022.
Also, a total of 12,553 cases of fraud and forgeries were reported in Nigeria’s banking sector in the first three months (Q1) of 2023.
