HSBC adopts SAS fraud spotting system

HSBC is using SAS's Fraud Management for Banking software to try and stem criminal activity around its customers’ accounts. The bank is using the technology to analyse its full transactional database to look for patterns that can signify such criminal activity.

Banks usually rely on spotting anomalies or unusual transactions on customer accounts to spot fraud, but the SAS system is said to be much faster and more comprehensive when spotting fraud.

HSBC has signed a 15-year deal with SAS for the systems being used, and the pair are planning to share some of their anti-fraud expertise with other financial institutions.

The bank also plans to use the SAS technology for risk management functions too, to help it sift out applications for credit.

Credit losses usually lead to much bigger losses for banks than fraud losses.