Guardian Analytics Unveils New Behavior-based Fraud Prevention Solution for ACH Transactions

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Aug. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Guardian Analytics, the market leader in behavior-based fraud prevention solutions, today announced FraudMAP ACH, the latest innovation in the company's multi-channel product portfolio. Using the same behavior-based anomaly detection technology proven to prevent fraud at hundreds of banks and credit unions in the online and mobile banking channels, FraudMAP ACH automatically analyzes ACH batches and transactions and prioritizes the highest risk payments for review. This proactive approach increases operational efficiency and reduces the risk of lost profits and clients.

"With ACH transaction volumes growing and criminals more eloquently tampering with ACH files, financial institutions are expending significant resources monitoring for fraudulent transactions and in many cases failing," said Craig Priess, founder and vice president of Products and Business Development at Guardian Analytics. "This is not a sustainable model. FraudMAP ACH fundamentally changes both the manner in which and how successfully a financial institution manages ACH payments risk."

FraudMAP ACH is the industry's first complete behavioral analytics-based fraud prevention solution for ACH transactions. NACHA, the Electronic Payments Association, released Sound Business Practices for Implementing Provisions of the Supplement in July 2012 in which they reinforce the need for anomaly detection capabilities called out in the 2011 FFIEC Guidance Supplement. The practices encourage FIs to "monitor accounts for unusual and out-of-pattern transaction flows." FraudMAP delivers precisely these capabilities by:

• Using the company's proprietary analytics, Dynamic Account Modeling™, FraudMAP ACH monitors originator and recipient behavior for anomalies relative to typical behavior.
• Automatically identifying high risk batches and individual transactions buried deep within very large ACH files, including payments where only details of single line items have been modified.
• Eliminating the need to maintain rules, limits, and negative lists and then manually comb through long exception reports.
• Focusing payment staff efforts on the most suspicious batches and transactions by rank ordering alerts and providing rich details on the unusual activity and client's payment history.

Independent Studies Reveal Need for Proactive Fraud Prevention Strategies

"The recent FS-ISAC Account Takeover Task Force survey performed by the American Bankers Association shows the instances of corporate account takeovers are significantly increasing year over year," said Bill Nelson, president and CEO of Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC). "The study also shows that investing in advanced layers of fraud prevention reduces risk and stems losses from attacks on ACH payments."

Guardian Analytics also released an infographic today that explains varying manipulations of ACH files and the impact fraud has on financial institutions and their client relationships.

The recently released 2012 Business Banking Trust Study by the Ponemon Institute highlights that financial institutions should consider not only fraud losses but also the complete impact of fraud, which include operational losses and customer churn. Findings in this annual study specific to the ACH channel include:

• Seventy three percent of corporate account takeover instances led to money leaving the bank before anyone noticed.
• Fifty six percent of businesses said it would take only one fraud incident for them to lose confidence in their financial institutions ability to protect their accounts. 
• Of businesses that were hit by fraud, 38% took some or all of their businesses elsewhere as a result. So, banks are losing customers.
• When a business loses money through a fraudulent ACH transaction, the bank reimburses some or all of the money 54% of the time. So, banks are losing money. 

FraudMAP ACH is available immediately and is offered as a SaaS solution, which speeds deployment, decreases implementation costs, and eliminates ongoing maintenance costs. Please contact the company for pricing and deployment information.

About Guardian Analytics

Guardian Analytics is the pioneer and leading provider of behavior-based fraud prevention solutions for financial institutions. With nearly 200 customers, more financial institutions trust Guardian's SaaS solutions to protect their clients' assets and conform to FFIEC expectations for anomaly detection than any other solution. Based in Mountain View, Calif., Guardian Analytics is privately held with venture funding from Foundation Capital, Sutter Hill Ventures, Split Rock Partners and Triangle Peak Partners. For more information, please visit www.GuardianAnalytics.com.

SOURCE Guardian Analytics