Confirmation of Payee was launched in 2020 and acts as an extra layer of protection when people are transferring money
The name-matching service, Confirmation of Payee (CoP), which aids in preventing people from mistakenly sending payments to the wrong individual or a scammer, has hit a significant milestone with two billion checks carried out, according to payments operator Pay. UK.
Launched in 2020, CoP serves as an additional layer of protection when individuals are transferring money, aiming to minimise misdirected payments and ensure that payments are sent to the intended account holder. The system prompts banking customers to confirm that the name they input for a payment request matches the name on the receiving account.
If there’s a mismatch, the customer is alerted and warned about the risks of proceeding with a payment without a confirmed match. In some instances, the customer may have simply entered incorrect details by mistake.
However, in other cases, a more sinister scenario could be unfolding, with the mismatch occurring because the supposed recipient is actually an impersonation scammer. Fraudsters often pretend to be legitimate organisations or impersonate someone else to deceive people into transferring money.
Since its inception, over 100 organisations have adopted CoP. CKate Frankish, chief business development officer and anti-fraud lead at Pay. UK, said: “Two billion checks is not only a significant milestone, it provides unequivocal evidence on the key role CoP plays in protecting customers from becoming victims of fraud.”
She continued: “The service has been instrumental in reducing fraud and misdirected payments. As we move forward, we remain committed to developing innovative solutions to stay ahead of fraudsters and protect end-users in the ever-changing digital and payments landscape.”
“October this year will see the Payment System Regulator’s (PSR) new mandatory reimbursement framework for APP (authorised push payment) fraud put into action, which will change the way consumers are reimbursed when fraud is committed against them.”
Explaining the process, she elaborated: “The sending bank is liable to refund the victim within five days and the receiving bank is then liable to refund 50% to the sending bank. This regulation has driven the focus on ways to prevent fraud in the first case, of which CoP is one of the multi-layered solutions in the market.”
“CoP has played a significant role in reducing fraud and misdirected payments, and we remain committed to developing innovative solutions to stay ahead of fraudsters and protect end-users in the ever-changing digital and payments landscape.”
