Visa Helps Fuel Retailers See Reduction in Fraud

SAN FRANCISCO — More than 35,000 gas stations have implemented Visa Inc.’s Visa Transaction Advisor, a service the global payments technology company stated can reduce fraud by more than half. Specifically, users of the service have seen counterfeit fraud rates decline by 54 percent and lost and stolen fraud chargeback rates decline by 54 percent, according to Visa.

“Visa Transaction Advisor gives fuel retailers a tool for applying Visa’s real-time fraud insights to transactions at the gas pump,” said Mark Nelsen, senior vice president of Risk Products, Visa. “The results we’re seeing in the fuel sector attest to the power of predictive analytics for many of our merchant partners. It’s an effective model for combatting fraud and one we hope to replicate with other merchant categories.”

After a cardholder inserts the card at the pump, Visa analyzes multiple data sets, such as past transactions, whether the account has been involved in a data compromise, and nearly 500 other pieces of data to create a risk score within milliseconds. This allows merchants to identify those transactions with a higher risk of fraud and perform further cardholder authentication before gas is pumped. Visa research has shown that when a fraudster is asked to go inside and see a store employee to complete a transaction, as a result of Visa Transaction Advisor, they will typically drive away instead.

Visa stated its solution is easy to implement. It uses existing message formats, pump software and hardware to ensure minimal impact to merchants and acquirers. The implementation is typically done at the national brand level, requiring little work from local franchise locations. The service analyzes more than 76 million transactions each month.

“Visa Transaction Advisor provides an extra layer of security at our 15,000 service stations in the United States,” said Mike Swillo, US Credit Card Operations Manager at Shell. “It seamlessly integrates with our other risk management strategies and provides added protection for merchants without inconveniencing our customers. We’re able to provide added security at our fuel pumps, which protects our customers, station operators and the brand.”

Added Rick Steckroth, director of Business Development at Alttona, Pa.-based Sheetz: “What makes Visa Transaction Advisor so effective is it helps block criminals before they can even pick up the pump. This helps us to maintain a great customer experience while still managing for fraud.”