Westpac New Zealand Successfully Implements MasterCard’s RiskFinderÔ
Efficiency, Ease of Implementation and Use Cited as Reasons for Success
Singapore, May 21, 2003 – Westpac New Zealand is the latest customer for MasterCard International’s fraud-risk
management tool, RiskFinder. Westpac joins PT ANZ Panin (in Indonesia), EON Bank and Alliance Bank (both in Malaysia),
in implementing RiskFinder in the Asia/Pacific region.
The state-of-the-art system uses a unique neural network system, which is able to instantly access historical fraud data
from around the world when each card transaction is being processed electronically. This happens in near real time, with
each transaction – based on a 1-999 evaluation system – assigned a degree of risk that is then sent back to the issuer,
who then determines what to do next.
Esmond Chan, vice president Risk and Security Management, MasterCard International, said, “Unlike other neural network
products, the costs of implementing RiskFinder are minimal. The hardware resides at MasterCard’s Global Operations Hub
in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Our members simply pay on a per-transaction fee basis for the number of transactions sent
for scoring. RiskFinder is capable of making millions of risk assessments daily.”
Vince Clark, Westpac’s Product Manager Card Issuing stated: “Despite having the product only a few weeks, it has already
prevented enough fraud to have paid for itself. Accordingly, it is now an integral part of our fraud detection and
prevention strategy and we look forward to its continued success.” Clark said that Westpac, as New Zealand’s largest
issuer of MasterCard cards, needed a tool to protect both the Bank and its customers, and Westpac was confident that
RiskFinder could deliver.
The functionality, ease of implementation and use was also important to its early success at Westpac. The bank’s fraud
manager, Patrick Cattermole, said: “We needed something which would allow us to respond quickly and effectively to fraud
trends as they arose.”
MasterCard expects that several other key members in Asia/Pacific will roll out this risk management tool in the near
future. In its first few weeks of installation, the industry-leading solution – which has been adopted by some 450 banks
globally – has already demonstrated proof of its return on investment.
Westpac New Zealand Successfully Implements MasterCard’s RiskFinderÔ May 21, 2003
RiskFinder is a powerful fraud detection tool that manages to strike just the right balance between efficient
functionality, ease of use and implementation. The inherent flexibility in RiskFinder provides a good framework for the
development of a highly specific fraud detection process which can be tailored as required.
RiskFinder is unique for the extra value-add information that it can provide through its three key components, namely:
A Cardholder Profiling Model – a dynamic profile for individual accounts against which new transactions are assessed. A Risk Model – to assess fraud patterns and associations A Central Merchant Profile – which provides a profile of fraud prone merchants derived from MasterCard’s SAFE system
and updated weekly (SAFE is a global fraud database, it stands for System to Avoid Fraud Effectively).
MasterCard provided extensive implementation support to Westpac that included initial online training conducted remotely
from its Global Operations Hub in St. Louis. This has included system enhancements at the Regional Service Center for
Australasia to provide additional data to develop comprehensive merchant profiles for merchants in Australia & New Zealand. This is a major differentiator and Westpac were able to immediately benefit from it.
Westpac is the first user in Asia/Pacific of the newly improved and highly flexible RiskFinder Alerts case management
system that can be accessed through MasterCard. Westpac Fraud Analyst, Ina Muaiava, was impressed with the RiskFinder
Alerts visual display commenting that “RiskFinder has a well thought-out design with clear, concise labels and a well
defined visual display.”
About MasterCard International
MasterCard International has a comprehensive portfolio of well-known, widely accepted payment brands including
MasterCard, Cirrus and Maestro. With approximately 25,000 MasterCard, Cirrus and Maestro members worldwide, MasterCard
serves consumers and businesses, both large and small, in 210 countries and territories. MasterCard is a leader in
quality and innovation, offering a wide range of payment solutions in the virtual and traditional worlds. The MasterCard
award-winning Pricelessâ advertising campaign is now seen in 96 countries and in 45 languages, giving the MasterCard
brand a truly global reach and scope. For the year ended December 31, 2002, gross dollar volume exceeded US$1.14
trillion.