Blocked hundreds of thousands of suspicious transactions

With TPBank, the new system will identify recipient accounts linked to fraudulent activity or those on a high-risk list, thereby issuing alerts so the bank can proactively refuse to process the transaction, meaning the customer cannot transfer money in any way.

Mr. Pham Anh Tuan, Director of the Payment Department - State Bank of Vietnam, said that after more than 4 months of implementing the Fraudulent Account Alert System (SIMO), more than 610,000 customers have proactively paused or canceled transactions after receiving risk alerts, totaling over 2,300 billion VND.

Timely Alert System

SIMO is a central platform for sharing information about suspicious accounts between banks, financial institutions, and regulatory agencies. The feature for detecting suspicious accounts by banks operates based on a direct connection with the SIMO system.

The automated banking system alerts account holders when it detects unusual activity. Photo: LE TINH

Statistics show that thousands of cases have been avoided thanks to the timely alert system. Tien Phong Bank (TPBank) is the latest institution to implement a feature that alerts users to accounts suspected of fraud across all transaction channels, from the banking app to ATMs and over-the-counter transactions. This system helps customers detect suspicious beneficiary accounts early, proactively preventing fraud from the outset.

Rapid response team handles fraudulent transactions

According to Mr. Pham Anh Tuan, in the context of Vietnam's rapidly developing payment system, which is among the fastest in the region, controlling fraud has become more challenging than ever. There are cases where money is transferred through more than 20 banks in just a few minutes, making tracing very difficult.

The implementation of the SIMO system aims to build a safe and transparent payment environment. However, to further minimize fraud, a consensus among banks is needed to jointly protect customers. In reality, many accounts still lack complete data updates.

"We need to strengthen control from account opening and wallet opening to monitoring unusual transactions; automate coordination processes between banks; and consider establishing a central coordination center to handle suspicious transactions in real time, even outside of business hours," Mr. Tuan said.

According to Dr. Nguyen Quoc Hung, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Banking Association, to increase the effectiveness of fraud prevention, credit institutions and related units need to appoint a focal point to participate in a 24/7 "rapid response team" to coordinate the handling of fraudulent transactions in real time; and review, improve, and supplement internal regulations related to the process of receiving and handling customer complaints.

Simultaneously, standardizing data, forms, and information exchange processes between banks, payment intermediaries, and authorities is necessary, as well as strengthening coordination with the police in verifying and handling cases. This will contribute to reducing increasingly sophisticated and complex fraud and scams in the banking sector.

In fact, some banks have recognized the problem and are enhancing their anti-fraud features. For TPBank, the new system will identify recipient accounts involved in fraudulent activities or on a verified high-risk list, thereby issuing a warning so the bank can proactively refuse to process the transaction, meaning customers cannot transfer money in any form. "This tiered approach proactively protects users without affecting legitimate transactions, ensuring a balance between safety and a seamless customer experience," said a TPBank representative.