Revolut CEO Nikolai Storonsky (left) and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Reuters
British fintech company Revolut on Thursday criticized Facebook's parent company Meta over its approach to tackling fraud, saying the US tech giant should directly compensate people who fall victim to scams across its social media platforms.
After one day dead Announced a partnership with British banks NatWest and Metro Bank on a data-sharing framework designed to help prevent customers from falling prey to fraud schemes, and Revolut said the agreement “falls woefully short of what is needed to address fraud globally.”
In a statement, Woody Maalouf, head of financial crime at Revolut, said Meta's plans to tackle financial fraud on its platforms amount to “baby steps, when what the industry really needs are giant leaps forward.”
“These platforms have no responsibility to compensate victims, and therefore have no incentive to do anything about it,” Maalouf added. “The obligation to share data, while needed, is not good enough.”
CNBC has contacted Meta for comment.
New payments industry reforms will come into effect in the UK on October 7 that require banks and payment companies to issue compensation to victims of so-called authorized payment (APP) fraud up to a maximum of £85,000 ($111,000).
The British Payments Regulatory Authority had previously recommended a maximum amount of 415 thousand pounds sterling to compensate victims of fraud, but it backed down after a violent reaction from banks and payment companies.
Revolut's Malouf said that while his company agrees with the steps the UK government is taking to combat fraud, Meta and other social media platforms must do their part to financially compensate those who fall victim to fraud as a result of scams originating from their sites. .
The fintech company published a report on Thursday claiming that 62% of fraud reported by users on its online banking platform originated from Meta, down from 64% last year.
The bank said in its report on consumer security and financial crimes that Facebook was the most common source of all fraud reported by Revolut users, accounting for 39% of fraud, while WhatsApp was the second largest source of such events with a share of 18%. “.
