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Cybersecurity is a cat-and-mouse game, with new technologies providing more sophisticated protections -- and threats. That has only accelerated with generative AI, which has led to even more advanced attacks, but PayPal is now leveraging it to stay ahead.
PayPal, which also owns the digital payment platform Venmo, has added a new, dynamic, AI-powered scam alert system to its fraud prevention initiative, which is meant to keep its worldwide ecosystem of users safer and combat scammers with quickly evolving tactics.
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"We need to be smarter and faster than the scammers, and we're combating AI used by bad actors with more intelligent AI used for good," said Yigit Yildirim, SVP of global fraud prevention at PayPal.
AI-powered scam alerts
PayPal is rolling out AI-powered scam alerts for Friends and Family transactions on the PayPal platform globally and Venmo in the US. This alert system lets users know before they send money if something is a potential scam, as seen in the image below.
PayPal
Depending on the level of risk detected, the alert will show different warnings about the likelihood of each transaction being a scam, adding more friction as the risk increases.
For example, at the highest confidence of a scam, it will block the payment from moving forward. For potential risks in which fewer risky signals are detected, it will take less drastic action, such as sending alerts encouraging users to verify safety or recommending actions.
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