- Mastercard yesterday launched crypto fraud protection tool, Crypto Secure
- The software will be used by banks to ascertain the trustworthiness of a crypto exchange
- The software uses information gathered by blockchain forensics service Ciphertrace
Mastercard yesterday launched a crypto fraud protection tool for banks that allows them to verify if crypto merchants could be linked to financial crime. The new product, called Crypto Secure, is powered by Ciphertrace, the blockchain security startup that Mastercard acquired last year and that has its feet firmly under the blockchain analysis table. The tool will help banks recognise potentially fraudulent crypto merchants and help them make decisions on whether to accept payments from them or not.
Crypto Secure Will Help Banks Stay Compliant
According to CNBC, Crypto Secure uses “sophisticated” artificial intelligence algorithms to determine the risk of crime related to cryptocurrency exchanges on the Mastercard payment network. Banks and other card issuers using Crypto Secure use a dashboard with colour-coded ratings representing the risk of suspicious activity, although it is up to card issuers themselves to determine whether to turn away a specific crypto merchant or not. The system uses data from the blockchain as well as other unnamed sources to inform its decisions.
Mastercard already uses technology similar to that found in Crypto Secure to prevent fraud in fiat currency transactions, expanding its functionality to Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Ajay Bhalla, Mastercard’s president of cyber and intelligence business, said the introduction of the software was to ensure that its partners can “stay compliant with the complex regulatory landscape.”
Ciphertrace Has Strong Crypto Pedigree
In using Ciphertrace, Mastercard can call on a wealth of experience in blockchain security. Its Traveler software, which helps exchanges stay compliant with new FATF guidelines, was implemented by Binance in 2021 to ensure that the exchange remained compliant, a year after the company partnered with Shyft to create the tool.
Ciphertrace also claimed in 2020 it had developed a Monero tracing tool, something that was called into question by the Monero community.
