Mastercard’s Threat Scan Helps Banks Detect Vulnerabilities

Mastercard has launched Threat Scan, a global solution to help banks spot authorization weaknesses before a breach occurs, the company announced in a press release on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

The new service is being featured at the Mastercard Cybersecurity Summit in Croatia from Sept. 30-Oct. 3.

As weaknesses in authorization systems can be exploited by online thieves, financial services firms are more vulnerable to hackers and get hit 300 times more often than other businesses, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

Threat scan intuitively mimic fraudulent behavior and can be used in conjunction with tools already in place.

“Our customers increasingly rely on us to provide solutions that help make their systems safer and more secure,” said Johan Gerber, executive vice president, security and cyber innovation, Mastercard. “Threat Scan enables our customers to stay one step ahead, act faster and minimize the risks that expose them to attacks. As cyberattacks grow in scale and sophistication, it is critical that we advance trust in our payments system.”

Threat Scan simulates various fraudulent scenarios from Mastercard’s “global insights into criminal behaviors.” The scenarios will be continuously expanded based on new cybercrimes.

“Threat Scan is part of our multi-layered security strategy to secure the payments ecosystem,” said Johan. “Customers who participated in our pilot told us they gained valuable insights into how to secure their authorization systems against future attacks. Many were surprised by what we found.”

In early May, Mastercard, in partnership with Edenred Bank and SEDESSON, the Mexico state agency for social benefits, announced a first-of-its-kind test in Mexico’s Sonora state – the first regional test of biometric card technology in national history.

Mastercard is continually working on ways to improve safety and security in both card-present and card-not-present transactions. The company is also exploring how to modernize its regulatory regime around security and data sharing, and how to deal with an extremely diverse population in terms of technological and commerce sophistication.