Commonwealth Bank plans to offer its industry-leading NameCheck anti-scams technology to government organisations and other financial service companies that process payments in Australia as part of a broader national approach to combat scams and fraud amongst the Australian community.
NameCheck, an Australian banking first which helps reduce false billing scams as well as mistaken payments, was launched to CBA customers on the CommBank App and NetBank in March this year. Since 31 March 2023, NameCheck has helped over 11,000 CBA customers, saving over $11m in mistaken payments.
The service is being gradually extended to business customers who use the CommBiz platform starting from today while CBA also announced it plans to offer NameCheck to other companies and payment processors later this year. Other organisations with appropriate controls, monitoring, and oversight will be able to benefit from CBA’s payment capabilities through a secure API.
NameCheck applies advanced technology to support a customer making a first time payment. It provides a customer with an indication of whether the account name entered by the customer matches a BSB and account number.
“We have commenced discussions with government bodies and other financial institutions and we look forward to extending our technology to other trusted organisations to help prevent scams and fraud,” said General Manager of Group Fraud at CommBank, James Roberts.
“We believe that a national ecosystem response with involvement from business, government and the community is needed to holistically address scams and fraud. By making NameCheck available outside of CBA, we are strengthening the ability of the payments ecosystem in preventing financial loss.”
“We are committed to do everything we can to protect not only our customers, but the wider community, from the financial losses and emotional distress associated with scams and fraud,” said Mr Roberts.
The expansion of NameCheck follows CBA’s launch of its accompanying anti-scams service CallerCheck and the piloting of a partnership with Telstra to protect customers of both companies from phone scammers in real-time.
CBA is also a founding partner of the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange and has welcomed the establishment of the Federal Government’s new National Anti-Scams Centre, the SMS sender ID registry as well as additional funding to take down phishing websites and other sites that promote investment scams.
Where to find out more
CommBank is welcoming enquiries from interested parties by contacting NameCheckAPI@cba.com.au
There are a number of online resources with further education and information about current scams, including commbank.com.au/scams and scamwatch.gov.au
Further detail about CommBank’s security technology and resources are available on the CommBank website: commbank.com.au/safe
We’re here to help
If a customer identifies unauthorised transactions or unusual conduct on their accounts, or need to confirm contact from CommBank is genuine, they can call us anytime on 13 2221 (+61 2 9999 3283 from overseas), or visit their local branch.
Customers who think they’ve been scammed can also call the Bank’s Scams Team on 1800 023 919. Select option 2, then option 1 (Monday to Friday 8am – 7pm, Saturday to Sunday 8am – 4pm Sydney time).
About CBA’s Business Bank
Commonwealth Bank is Australia’s leading business bank, supporting Australians to start, run and grow their business for over a century. With more than one million small, medium and commercial businesses across the country, Commonwealth Bank brings together the leading technology, products and lending solutions to meet the needs of today’s businesses.
For more information on Commonwealth Bank Business Banking, visit: commbank.com.au/business
Measures are current at the date of this media release and are subject to change.
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