Most Americans Want More Insight on Fraud Prevention

About two-thirds of Americans want more insight to how their bank detects and fights fraud, according to a survey released today by Detica NetReveal and Ipsos MORI.

The survey, which polled a representative sample of 1,015 U.S. residents between the age of 18 and 64, showed that 65 percent of respondents desire more insight into the preventative measures their banks implemented, with 48 percent indicating they were fairly or very concerned that their bank accounts could be at risk of fraud. Of those surveyed, 61 percent believe it is chiefly their bank's responsibility to protect their accounts from fraud.

NetReveal founder and CTO Imam Hoque recently told Bank Systems & Technology that in the U.S., fraud is getting increasingly more sophisticated.

"These guys take billions out of the economy," Hoque says. "Their ability is always increasing and part of the challenge for the banks is to keep ahead of them."

NetReveal, an enterprise fraud, intelligence and risk management offering, recently expanded its U.S. operations following success overseas.

Additional information from the survey showed that nearly half of respondents — 46 percent — felt their banks had supplied information and advice to keep their accounts save from fraud, though 33 percent felt they were more at risk than ever before.

"Customers are frequently unaware of the impact fraud can have on their lives until it happens to them,” said Wesley Wilhelm, senior analyst, Aite Group. “It’s not uncommon for customers to have a limited understanding of all the various measures banks take to safeguard personal financial information. It is understandable that consumers would want as much information as possible while not wanting any security controls to be revealed to identity thieves. It is still the customer’s responsibility to inquire about and understand how they can assist in implementing and enhancing the anti-fraud initiatives of their financial institutions. It is ultimately their accounts that are at risk and their assets and financial identity that are under attack."