Westpac, one of Australia’s largest banks, is launching a new payment verification service called Westpac Verify to combat fraudulent and mistaken transactions.
The service is designed to detect discrepancies between the account name, account number, and BSB numbers on transactions made through the New Payments Platform (NPP).
Transactions that are flagged as potentially fraudulent or mistaken will be put on hold until the customer reviews them. If no action is taken after four hours, the payment will be processed.
The new feature will be rolled out to customers next month following the completion of testing. Westpac’s move comes after the Commonwealth Bank launched a similar service last month. Westpac’s CEO of consumer and business banking, Chris de Bruin, said that customer losses due to scams reached a new high in December and encouraged customers to adopt PayID for added protection.