Charlie, the fintech company on a mission to help older Americans get the most out of their money and keep it safe, announced the launch of SpeedBump, a proprietary combination of pauses, alerts, and real-time education introduced at the exact moments customers are most vulnerable to fraud.
Research shows that when people are aware of a specific scam, they are 80% less likely to engage with it, and if they do engage, they are 40% less likely to lose money or sensitive information. As financial fraud plagues older Americans, with over $28 billion stolen from them each year, SpeedBump ensures customers are maximally aware of the latest information about fraud, so they are empowered to protect their money during the moments they are most at risk. SpeedBump is a major step forward in protecting older Americans from rampant financial abuse.
“The proliferation of AI has created a new frontier of fraud, where criminals can impersonate financial institutions, businesses, and even victims’ loved ones via email, text, and voice with just a few clicks of a button,” said Kevin Nazemi, co-founder and CEO of Charlie. “AI has unleashed a disturbing new wave of financial fraud and scams on this population, leaving them more vulnerable than ever. With billions stolen from older Americans every year and fraudsters becoming more sophisticated, we believe it is our responsibility to build impactful technology to empower our customers to get the most out of their money and keep it safe. SpeedBump is the next frontier in helping older Americans protect themselves in this growing war.”
How SpeedBump Works
SpeedBump activates when the following actions take place due to the acute risk they present:
- Payees: A Charlie customer adds a new payee. Fraud can occur when a criminal puts pressure on a victim to quickly add them as a payee to their account to send money, or an unauthorized person with access to an account adds a new payee, oftentimes themselves, to move money out.
- Transactions: Transfers over $100 from their Charlie account. This covers a wide variety of fraud, including caretaker or family fraud, where a payee is established but the account holder does not approve of the transfer, among much else.
- Devices: They log into their Charlie account from an unknown device or a device they have not used in the past 30 days. This covers hackers using a remote device to break into an account or a caretaker or service provider accessing multiple devices they may have access to.
Whenever one of these actions is taken, SpeedBump activates to empower the customer to determine if they are in the midst of financial fraud, and if so, take immediate action to stop it. SpeedBump consists of the following:
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The Pause: When a new payee or device is added, a six-hour pause is immediately implemented before any money can be released. Money movement over $100 to established payees gets a one-hour speedbump. If the customer takes no action, the money leaves their account at the conclusion of the pause with no further action required. However, if the activity is fraudulent or suspicious, the customer has the option to stop it.
- How it stops fraud: Once money leaves a bank account, it becomes much harder, if not impossible, to recover it. The pause gives the customer crucial time to either cancel the transaction themselves in the Charlie app or to seek help from Charlie customer support.
- Example: Imposter scams – A fraudster posing as the Social Security Administration contacts a customer to inform them that their system crashed and that they need the customer’s login credentials to their Charlie account to confirm their Social Security is being deposited to their Charlie account. The fraudster gains access to the customer’s account and moves money out of their Charlie account to the fraudster’s account. The pause gives the customer time to stop the transaction.
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Smart Alerts: Customers receive notifications on their app, via email and text informing them about the pause, and the reason it was activated, and directs them to contact Charlie customer support with any questions or concerns to ensure they are maximally aware of what is happening in their account. In addition, Charlie customers receive real-time smart alerts for all account activity, including important things like updated balances, new device log-ins, new payees, password changes, and address changes, ensuring they know exactly what happens in their account the moment it happens.
- How it stops fraud: This informs customers that a recent action has been taken on their account and allows them to confirm if they took that action or not.
- Example: Sweepstakes/Lottery scams – A fraudster claiming to be from Publishers Clearing House contacts a customer over email using generative AI to inform them they have won money but to receive the winnings, they need the customer’s bank login details to confirm the account is active and can receive the funds. The fraudster logs in to the customer’s account, using a device and IP address outside of the country, and attempts to transfer money out of their account to the fraudster’s account. Smart alerts will inform the customers in real-time what’s happening and give them the time to stop it.
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Real-Time Education: Customers receive real-time education about the type of fraud that most often corresponds with the action they are taking.
- How it stops fraud: Research shows that simply knowing about fraud helps prevent it from happening. They may not know that the person urging them to transfer money could be a scammer. This is a vital step in arming customers with information to make smart decisions and protect themselves.
- Example: Grandparent fraud – A Charlie customer receives a call from a scammer using AI to impersonate their granddaughter. They claim to need money urgently. SpeedBump will inform the customer about how scammers create a false sense of urgency and to be careful if they are feeling pressured. They then have a full six hours to determine it wasn’t her and undo the action.
Taken together, these steps represent an entirely new way to provide ongoing, meaningful fraud protection and education to older Americans exactly when they need it most.
SpeedBump Impact
Financial fraud causes extensive and long-lasting harm to victims, costing them money, financial security, and time, and creating inconvenience and a devastating emotional impact. Nearly half of older Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck, and over 17 million American adults over 65 are economically insecure. A major fraud can wipe them out entirely, but minor fraud has negative impacts as well, often making it hard for victims to pay their bills on time, afford everyday items like groceries or gas, and can cause major inconveniences like replacing their cards, their phone and updating all of their billing information across various accounts. Fraud victims also report feeling sad and ashamed after an incident, experiencing loss of confidence, anxiety, and depression.
Studies show that one of the most common and effective fraudster tactics is creating artificial urgency that overwhelms victims and causes them to make rash decisions. However, research shows that when people are aware of a specific scam, they are 80% less likely to engage with it, and if they do engage, they are 40% less likely to lose money or sensitive information.
SpeedBump is designed to counterbalance this urgency by providing both education and time to breathe to stop financial fraud before it happens. SpeedBump can help protect against many types of common scams: romance, pig butchering, phishing, grandparent, tech support, sweepstakes, account takeovers, along with many others. SpeedBump empowers customers to learn scammer tactics, behaviors, and signals to help them keep their money safe.
SpeedBump is a new feature of FraudShield, a comprehensive, personalized suite of fraud protection tools built exclusively for the unique needs of 62+ Americans. FraudShield is entirely free of charge for all Charlie customers. Please visit https://www.charlie.com/fraudshield to learn more.
About Charlie
Charlie is the place for older Americans to get the most out of their money and keep it safe. Charlie uses machine learning technology and an expert, US-based customer service team to study older Americans’ unique financial habits, needs, and vulnerabilities. These insights inform the features and functions Charlie designs to provide them with financial flexibility and protection. With faster access to their Social Security check, groundbreaking fraud protection, competitive earnings on deposits, no monthly fees or minimums, and intuitive, age-optimized product design, Charlie customers have the financial peace of mind they deserve. Banking services provided by Sutton Bank; Members FDIC. To learn more, visit Charlie.com.
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