Mastercard will launch a tool to detect bitcoin fraud

The Mastercard payment system will launch a new Crypto Secure tool that will help banks identify and stop transactions from cryptocurrency exchanges subject to fraudulent practices, CNBC writes.

It is reported that this product was developed by the CipherTrace team, which became part of Mastercard in 2021.

According to the publication, the Crypto Secure system uses “sophisticated” artificial intelligence algorithms to determine the risk of committing a crime related to the exchange of cryptocurrencies in the Mastercard payment network. The system relies on data from the blockchain, public records of cryptotransactions, as well as other sources. At the same time, users see a dashboard with risk ratings for a particular transaction. The decision to approve it/the refusal is accepted by the partner of the payment network itself.

Mastercard already uses a similar technology to prevent fraud in transactions with fiat currency, and thanks to Crypto Secure, this functionality will be expanded to bitcoin and other virtual currencies.

Mastercard’s cybersecurity president Ajay Bhalla did not disclose the exact data on transactions related to cryptocurrencies, but stressed that their number per minute is already in the thousands.

Earlier, Visa reported that users of cryptocurrency cards based on the payment system conducted transactions in the amount of $2.5 billion in October-December 2021.