Shopify Fraud Protect is a new security feature that has been announced by the ecommerce platform provider. It’s purpose is to make it easier for merchants to identify fraudulent transaction, specifically those made by stolen credit cards or financial information obtained illegally.
Moreover, Shopify says that one of the aims of the new feature is to minimise the time merchants spend assessing potentially fraudulent transactions. It will also offer support in the event of a chargeback.
Shopify users just need to activate the service in their payment settings although there is no information about whether it will attract a fee and, if so, what it will cost. That said, they have have said that they will provide cover for fraudulent transactions that do take place that is potentially very attractive to merchants.
With Fraud Protect, we’re giving online businesses a real-time protection decision on every order they receive through Shopify Payments. We’re managing all of the risk that comes with the transactions. If the transaction is indeed fraudulent, Shopify will eat the loss. We’ll also manage chargeback disputes with Visa and Mastercard. Effectively, we’re helping them fulfill more orders, in a shorter amount of time, while giving them peace of mind.
– Mohammad Hashemi, Shopify general manager of financial solutions
The offer to “eat the loss” is obviously the USP here and displays considerable confidence in the product. It’s easy to imagine that they have some whizzy technology in the background that leads them to make such a compelling offer.
And there is also no doubt that buyer fraud is a problem for ecommerce merchants selling from their own website who are constantly fearful of taking an order from a stolen credit card that will subsequently attract a chargeback. And many do spend considerable time checking out the veracity of a buyer, especially on high-value items or big shopping baskets, and in some ways the expense of time can be more irksome than the monetary loss.
We’d love to hear from merchants who might be keen to use Shopify Fraud Protect. Or if not, why not.
