Payfone Wins Definitive SIM Swap Attack-Prevention Patent: Major Cryptocurrency Successfully Eliminates Account Takeovers Using Payfone Tech

NEW YORK, Aug. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- SIM swap attacks have been making headlines as one of the fastest-growing and most devastating fraud vectors plaguing companies and consumers today, with the number of victims increasing more than 250% between 2013 and 2016, according to the U.S. Fair Trade Commission. As reported by WIRED, CNBC and Motherboard, hackers have been using the scam, and a variation known as number port-out or porting fraud, to drain millions of dollars from consumers' online accounts. But consumers are not the only victims of these attacks. Service providers such as banks, cryptocurrency exchanges, healthcare companies and social media networks who fail to protect their users against SIM swap and porting fraud have also been making the news. In addition to major reputational damage, companies risk losing users to more secure competitors, and find themselves liable for billions in lost funds.

WHAT COMPANIES CAN DO TO PROTECT THEMSELVES AND THEIR CUSTOMERS

Payfone, the world's leading digital identity authentication company, announced today that it has won a definitive patent for its anti-SIM swap and porting attack technology. Called the Trust Score, the technology is already helping proactive service providers to protect their customers by detecting SIM swap and porting signals before hackers can take over accounts, and alerting companies of abnormal activity. Clients who use Payfone's patented technology have reported an elimination or dramatic reduction in SIM swap and porting account takeover attacks since implementation. In the case of one cryptocurrency client, this technology has saved the company and its customers millions in cryptocoins by thwarting attempted SIM swap hacking attacks.

"SIM swap and porting attacks are now a national epidemic, and Payfone has the power to stop this," said Rodger Desai, Chief Executive Officer of Payfone. "We have the definitive set of patents and solutions to solve this growing threat. We urge service providers to take action by using our technology to thwart these types of attacks before they can do harm to their customers and to their reputations."

Payfone's Trust Score gives companies real-time insights, at the time of a transaction, by combining a check of whether a SIM swap has taken place with advanced behavioral analytics. Payfone is able to provide these services without storing or passing personally identifiable information in production environments to service providers who obtain consent to use the Trust Score.

The Trust Score has an additional benefit of creating a more seamless experience for legitimate users. One of the main complaints that consumers have about accessing online services is that proving their identities through passwords, knowledge-based authentication and SMS one-time passcodes is cumbersome and time-consuming. Payfone overcomes this tradeoff by using advanced analytics to make logging into online accounts easy for good users and impossible for scammers.

"Consumers expect digital services to be effortless and secure. Yet security can often be cumbersome," said David Birch, Global Ambassador, Consult Hyperion. "With new, cutting edge attacks such as SIM swaps, businesses need more and better security, which could mean more friction and therefore fewer customers. Payfone's technologies deliver the security without the friction."

Interested in learning how Payfone can stop SIM swap fraudsters from damaging your company? Contact us here to set up a free consultation.

About Payfone
Payfone is the leading digital identity authentication provider for the connected world. The world's largest banks, insurers, brokerages and technology companies trust Payfone to accelerate revenue by thwarting digital identity theft with real-time, passive identity authentication and predictive identity confidence through our patented Trust Score. Our solutions enable consumers and businesses to transact digitally with trust. Learn more at www.payfone.com and www.linkedin.com/company/payfone.

Press Contact:
Yuka Yoneda
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+1.212.614.6927

SOURCE Payfone

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