Viewpoint: Higher Contactless Payment limits will increase Fraud

A poll that EAST ran from May to August 2021 indicates that the majority believe that higher contactless payment limits will increase fraud opportunities.

One outcome of the covid-19 pandemic has been a surge in the use of contactless payment technology.  Cardholders are enjoying faster payments and the ability to pay how they want, either using a card, or NFC if their smartphone has the required app.

The result of an EAST Poll that ran from May to August 2020 indicated that people are increasingly happy to move away from cash payments, either just using contactless, or using a mix of payment mechanisms.

The pandemic has accelerated a move away from cash, with shoppers often being encouraged to use contactless in many stores for public health reasons.  In many countries both the single transaction contactless payment threshold, and the contactless threshold for multiple transactions, without a PIN, have increased.

But will higher contactless transaction limits, without PIN, increase fraud opportunities?  65% of respondents to the EAST poll think that this will be the case.

The EAST Expert Group on Payment and Transaction Fraud (EPTF), which meets three times each year, focuses on the prevention of payment and transaction fraud, including contactless payment transactions. The 11th EAST EPTF meeting took place on 10 November 2021.