Faster Doesn’t Prove Safer For Hong Kong Mobile Payments
Mobile payments benefit from several key attributes, including speed and convenience. However, speed and convenience often come with negative connotations, like a lack of security. If it’s easy for us to use, many think, then how easy is it for someone who shouldn’t be using it? That’s a problem that recently hit Hong Kong’s new Faster Payment System (FPS) like a ton of bricks as new reports of fraud in the system are hitting just weeks after it went online.
The system hasn’t been active all that long, but there are already three complaints of fraud in the FSP system. It’s not that minor, either; the lowest incident of fraud is said to be $1,280, while the highest is up around $12,750, according to word from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). The causes of the fraud vary; one noted that her personal ID and bank account number had both been stolen, and put to work in committing the fraud by using FPS’ Autopay. The HKMA, meanwhile, responded by shutting down the Autopay portion of FPS.
Another used personal information to set up an eWallet account and turn on direct debit capability over the electronic connection. HKMA didn’t turn around and shut down eWallet access, though; in fact, it noted that these particular cases of fraud aren’t examples of security issues within FPS. However, on the plus side, the HKMA noted that most bank account holders wouldn’t be held liable for such fraud if they didn’t actually authorize the transaction in question.
Of course, it’s a bridge too far to say that any system is perfectly secure. While three instances of fraud in the month or so it’s been online might be a little on the concerning side, given that the system is said to link into 20 different banks and eight electronic payment systems, it’s probably processing a lot more than three transactions a month. It wouldn’t be surprising to find out it was more than three per second.
Any amount of fraud in a mobile payment system is disturbing and must be wiped out. But percentage-wise, it seems like the system is surprisingly sound. There are always improvements to be made in mobile payments security, because there will always be fraudsters looking for a way around that security.