"This is a substantial increase from only 76% at the end of 2013," says Walter Volker, CEO of the Payments Association of South Africa (PASA).
According to the official South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), Card Not Present (CNP) fraud contributed to 63% of the total credit card fraud losses during Q1 of 2014. This category of fraud remains one of the biggest concerns for PASA and the banking industry as a whole.
"With 3D Secure implementation, we have seen decreased fraud in a number of merchant categories and we will continue to reap the full benefit of reduced fraud once all merchants have implemented the system. Unfortunately, there is still a number of high volume, high-risk merchants such as some airline companies, travel agencies and direct marketing companies who have not implemented it in a timely fashion - and we urge these to do so soonest."
Over the last 18 months, PASA and South African banks have worked closely with local e-commerce merchants to assist them in implementing the system to help protect cardholders against unauthorised use of their cards when shopping online. Over 90% of e-commerce merchants are already enabled to support it.
3D Secure, also known as Verified by Visa or MasterCard SecureCode, is an authentication service that enables cardholders to use their card when shopping online. With this system, the online credit or debit card payment is redirected to the bank's 3D Secure service to facilitate an authentication process.
"Cardholders are encouraged to embrace the process and see this as an additional security measure to look out for when shopping online. We encourage cardholders to check whether the merchants they use are 3D Secure verified, by looking out for the signs. Where a cardholder feels uncomfortable using a merchant that has not implemented the system yet, the cardholder can contact the merchant or his/her bank directly."
It is not a new system and cardholders should not be anxious or nervous to use it. "Many merchants have been using it effectively for a number of years and thousands of transactions go through the system every month. The enforcement at an industry level will however ensure a more uniform approach to e-commerce security - something we have been working tirelessly to achieve," concludes Volker.
