ChargeSmart Further Enhances Anti-Fraud Measures to Help Thwart Identity Theft

April 12, 2011

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SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ChargeSmart, a provider of convenience fee-based card acceptance for organizations, announced it has added an additional layer of screening to its anti-fraud protection measures in an effort to further deter potential fraudulent transactions on consumers’ cards.

ChargeSmart has rolled out an additional layer of security that combines social data with traditional anti-fraud measures like geolocation tracking, IP authentication and biller information to cross reference against customer-provided data. ChargeSmart leverages this information along with its historical records to recognize abnormal behavior and has implemented appropriate processes for payment handling according to calculated risk.

If the system determines the risk to be above acceptable levels, the transaction is tagged and passed to one of ChargeSmart’s fraud specialists. A specialist manually reviews the payment, and in some cases, contacts the customer directly to confirm the payment is authorized and not made with fraudulent intent. Payments that are deemed high risk upon review are canceled and fully refunded.

ChargeSmart has always been committed to protecting the privacy of its customers, and as part of its industry leading anti-fraud solution, ChargeSmart currently executes the following measures to maintain account security and mitigate risk:

Checks every card-funded transaction against the Address Verification System (AVS) and Card Security Code (CSC) to validate the customer’s identity and possession of the card being used;
Uses advanced ID verification software to run a soft check against the customer’s information for any instances of reported fraud to prevent further abuse;
Employs a dynamic flagging system within ChargeSmart that tags payment patterns consistent with those that have been historically observed with fraud on ChargeSmart or its affiliated sites.

“By enabling customers to pay their bills with a card through ChargeSmart, organizations can ensure heightened levels of security and industry-leading fraud prevention measures, mitigating risk and providing peace of mind to their valued customers,” said Tim Brinkman, CEO of ChargeSmart.

More than 300,000 consumers nationwide currently use ChargeSmart to facilitate card payments to their utilities, auto finance, student loan and mortgage companies, among others.

About ChargeSmart

Founded in 2008, San Francisco-based ChargeSmart is a provider of convenience fee-based card acceptance for organizations, allowing businesses to meet their customers’ card payment preferences without the expensive fees and technical challenges associated with traditional card acceptance programs. For more information, visit the company's website at http://corp.chargesmart.com/index.html.