This led to USD 48.5 million in abandoned payments in 2024, as real-time payment alerts in the NAB App and Internet Banking help raise scam awareness.
NAB customers abandoned USD 48.5 million worth of payments in the past months after the bank implemented a scam warning. December 2024, a month with Christmas and Boxing Day sales, was the month with the most abandoned payments, with customers giving up on USD 26 million worth of transactions after receiving the payment alert. This could be because the busy time of the year is when fraudsters are most active, as customers are distracted, thus prone to being scammed.
About USD 22.5 million in payments were abandoned in November, a month known for its Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, due to similar reasons.
The real-time alerts target invoice, investment, romance, and goods and services scams in the NAB App and Internet Banking. Customers receive an alert if a payment appears out of character for them or raises scam concerns. The alerts are designed to encourage users to stop and check right before they send money, as funds are hard to get back once the transfer is made.
NAB notes that the scams targeted started outside of its app, as banks have no visibility to interactions via text message, phone calls, social media or websites until someone attempts to transfer money on apps.
Recent actions the bank has taken to reduce the impact of scams on its customers include removing links from text messages to make it easier for customers to identify legitimate messages and blocking several payments to high-risk crypto exchanges.
Additionally, NAB joined the BioCatch Trust Australia, an inter-bank, intelligence-sharing network where members share information in real-time before payments are made. The bank is also on track to complete all seven initiatives in the ABA Scam Safe Accord.
Besides the alerts, NAB also offers customer and community education via the Security Hub website, emails, social media content, and free monthly webinars on the subject.
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