Customer Experience

In this episode of the Insights in Action podcast we talk to Neil Stephenson, Vice President of Strategic Client Development, about how businesses can address a lack of data. Following an earlier episode tackling business data challenges, we discuss getting value from the data your organization already has access to, tackling legacy software issues, the accelerated shift to customer-centric technology stacks, and an increase in industry partnerships to solve common challenges. Nearly a third of senior business leaders say they don't have enough data to get insights they need, or that the quality of the data they have access to is poor. We take a look at the three steps businesses need to take to address this challenge, starting with the quality of data already in the business. "We see a number of organizations that have pretty powerful data within their own business but don't leverage it as well as they could, so matching data together and making sure they've got a really strong view of their customer across all of their systems is really essential, and then having processes ongoing to make sure that they maintain that view whenever they touch the customer, whether that be through an online channel or face to face." Neil Stephenson, VP, Strategic Client Development Listen to the full episode here, and look back at the previous in the series, Solving key business data challenges - with Bill O'Connell, Experian Global Decision Analytics

In a recent piece for the Forbes Technology Council, Businesses Need to Modernize Their Approach For Delivering Digital Experiences, I shared how the current rapidly changing environment has greatly accelerated the shift from offline to digital interactions. As businesses experience a need for heightened governance and controls, they must look towards technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, coupled with access to data in real-time, to move forward. According to the report Experian commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct, 53% of businesses struggle to make consistent customer decisions. Additionally, only 29% of businesses believe they do a good job of connecting analytics to action. When applying AI and machine learning to customer experiences, there are some concerns that businesses must keep in mind. The first is legal implications and privacy protections, which must always be a priority. The second is to combine analytics models with real-time decisions so that predictions can be harnessed and put into action in real-time. As more and more businesses shift to fully digital experiences, they must learn how to apply their vast amounts of data to models that can help inform the newly remote customer experience. If interested in the topic of businesses’ modernized approach to digital experiences, you can find the full article here.

In this episode of Insights in Action, David Britton, Vice President of Global Identity & Fraud Solutions, discusses how the Covid-19 pandemic has prompted a massive shift to online for both consumers and businesses, and examines what implications have emerged across the online fraud landscape because of this. "As with any moment like Covid-19, fraudsters are very quick to pick up on possible areas of vulnerability that they can exploit in the market and in the ecosystem. And fraudsters always like to go where the weakest point is in the ecosystem or the weakest link in the chain. So fraudsters are absolutely taking advantage of this."David Britton Phishing is on the rise - fraudsters are impersonating key institutions and their communication channels to manipulate consumers Account takeover fraud - fraudsters are hiding in the traffic peak, posing as consumers using their credentials How businesses can counter the trend: Keeping online fraud at baySecuring our digital identitiesEnsuring a secure, transparent and meaningful treatment of data "The first thing to do is to ensure businesses are pulling together soft signals to define a better risk strategy and authentication strategy because then you can immediately identify if there's an anomolous actor that's trying to impersonate that 'known' good customer."David Britton Listen to this episode of the Insights in Action podcast

There’s a digital payments revolution, and mobile is leading the charge. But at what cost does convenience come? Juniper Research’s latest online payment fraud report explores key issues around increased cybercrime and what that means for businesses looking to invest in fraud prevention. View infographic

Digital interactions between businesses and consumers are on the rise. The ability to authenticate and recognize customers provides a convenient and secure experience. However, the latest Global ID & Fraud Report shows a significant disparity in perception between businesses and consumers when it comes to recognition. View Infographic

Depending on location, social distancing has been in full effect for 8-9 weeks and it’s taken its toll on parents juggling work, school and keeping kids busy. Many parents have eased up on video gaming restrictions as way to let their kids and teens to connect with friends outside of remote learning classroom activities. According to Verizon, video game-related streaming was up 75% in the first week of quarantine and has experienced double-digit increases over typical day figures pre-Covid. Bloomberg reported that Italy’s largest telecommunications company, Telecom Italia, had a 70% increase in Internet traffic, due in large part to streaming video games. The uptick in video game usage means not only an increase in kids’ screen time but greater fraud risks as younger gamers are especially vulnerable to hackers. Anywhere there’s transferable value, there’s a high potential for fraud to occur. Many of the traditional fraud methods we’ve seen in other payment types also apply to video game accounts, such as stolen credentials to open new accounts or unauthorized purchases made using an existing account. Gaming fraud also has unique features like compromising another players’ account to use their resources, whether it’s virtual money, like v-bucks or star coins, or other rewards, like exclusive tools, skins, or power-ups. Unlike a bank or credit card lender, unraveling and finding the source of fraudulent behavior in video games is difficult.  That’s why it’s important to be aware of the security measures that video game companies offer, what indicators to look for if you think your account has been hacked, and what more you and your kids can do to protect payment information.  Many online video games use passwords, and in some cases two-factor authentication, to protect your kids’ gaming accounts. If you believe your account has been seriously compromised, there are ways to contact the software developer and remediation services are provided. But despite these security measures, there’s more that can be done. Most importantly, don’t share any personal information when talking to other players. Some gamers are also social engineers who try to gain information on the real people playing the games – whether it’s your real name, location and age or it’s details about your life, your dog’s name, where you moved from, or email address. What may seem like a harmless exchange of information could lead to a social engineering fraud attack where an account is opened using your kids (or their parents’) information to impersonate them. The information exchanged could also be sold for cash on the Dark Web, where personal information is collected and sold to career fraudsters. What businesses can do: Explore the use of behavioral biometrics to add another layer to simple password protectionsUnderstand the role device identity can play, like exposing which vulnerable accounts have been accessed by a known fraudster but where digital goods have not yet been movedReview your risk policies and consider a layered security approach that will level up or down based on the type of in-game transaction What kids can do: Talk about the game and strategy only and don’t give away any personal informationPut yourself on mute when talking to someone in the same physical room while playing games Don’t gift rewards or virtual money with anyone you don’t know in real-life What parents can do: Make sure you practice good password hygiene Turn on any additional security features offered, like two-factor authenticationScrutinize every transaction in your account history With the usage increase of tools to connect with people, there’s also a trend worth mentioning that doesn’t necessarily lead to financial loss but worth a word of warning: opportunistic disruption.  Put simply, some hackers are simply trying to get into your account because they can and occasionally flash up or post inappropriate images and messages or simply push irrelevant advertising (aka click fraud). This can be especially harmful to younger gamers. The good news is that game makers seem to be aware and acting against these sorts of behaviors with increased priority and use of advanced security technologies. This same disruption has been seen in conferencing services used for schools and businesses. Whether you grew up playing the original Nintendo games or are an avid gamer family now, gaming trends among kids and adults continue to grow despite being in the throws of self-isolation.  The answer isn’t to turn off the gaming system but rather be aware that online video games are also vulnerable to the fraud attacks often seen in other industries.   Related stories: Q&A: Biometrics as the catalyst for trust in a socially distant world Are traditional online identification methods becoming obsolete?

In many respects, the explosion in the type and volume of customer data businesses gather to facilitate security, ensure a convenient, user-friendly approach to customer interactions, and personalize interactions is a double-edged sword. In an era when businesses are awash in data, customers' expectations regarding its use continue to grow. Nonetheless, when it comes time to recognize a consumer by utilizing the data, there is a disconnect between how confident businesses are in their ability to recognize the consumer and the consumer's confidence in businesses' ability to do the same. In our latest Global Identity and Fraud Report, where input from over 6,500 consumers and 650 businesses worldwide was gathered, 95% of businesses expressed confidence in their ability to recognize their customers whereas only 55% of consumers reported that they don't feel recognized by businesses. So why do businesses feel they are recognizing their customers better than customers think they are? At the heart of the problem, many businesses fail to appreciate the risks and shortcomings associated with weak or no identity verification and customer authentication tools, including their inability to prevent criminal activity or offer seamless processes that minimize customer friction. And while businesses possess the means of gathering data from customers through a multitude of identity verification and authentication touchpoints, they sometimes struggle to develop an overarching picture of individual customers, in conjunction with their needs during each phase of the customer lifecycle. This, in turn, results in a myopic view of the customer, despite the existence of extensive data. A never-ending torrent of data Due to the rapid increases in the number of connected devices, there is exponential growth occurring in the amount of data generated, with some estimates predicting an excess of 79.5 zettabytes (or 79.5 billion terabytes) of generated data by 2025. With these facts in mind, many companies experience the shortcomings of big data solutions and their ability to make sense of the unprecedented growth in consumer data at the fingerprints. This inability to provide actionable insight means that what started as promising data lakes now resemble data swamps, meaning that companies possess unfathomable amounts of data but struggle with how to put it to good use. The security implications for business and consumers While businesses rush to embrace digitization by gathering all manner of data from customers at every stage of their journey, vast amounts of data continue to be exposed. Furthermore, as stated earlier, when it comes to customer engagement, there are expectations that businesses must meet regarding security, convenience, and personalization, yet many businesses struggle to understand the interrelationship between these three elements. In specific terms, as a customer interacts with a company, they provide additional data, with each interaction. This helps paint a more accurate picture of their identity and behaviors. In turn, this increasingly detailed, data-driven portrait improves an organization's ability to recognize them in subsequent interactions. Moreover, with a more detailed understanding of the customer, the need for burdensome security processes lessens, resulting in less friction for the customer. In a nutshell, security, convenience, and personalization form individual legs of the same stool. Consequently, failing to consider this fact, leads to isolated security measures, peppered throughout the customer lifecycle. For example, while browsing online, a customer may receive recommendations regarding the products or services they may like. However, when they access their account profile during the same session, the company may force them to reauthenticate their access. Using this example, since the company had sufficient data to personalize the customer's experience, in theory, at least, they also possessed sufficient information about the customer and their identity to grant unfettered access to their profile. Was there a genuine need to reauthenticate the customer in this scenario? At the heart of that interaction lies the customer's identity, which forms the basis for any interactions. When disparate systems capture various elements of a customer's digital identity, a mechanism must exist to aggregate the elements, to minimize the friction customers experience when interacting with businesses at different points in the lifecycle. And while relatively sophisticated CRM systems exist to memorialize customer preferences, due to their inability to capture a holistic view of the customer's identity and subsequent activity during all touchpoint in the customer lifecycle, they often fall short as in their ability to deliver a cohesive, consistent and appealing approach when it comes to security. The power of layers and analytics When fractured infrastructures are in place, businesses often subject their customers to a complicated and disjointed approach to security and risk requests, while simultaneously bombarding them with attempts to up-sell or cross-sell products and services. So, while the goal of data gathering and analysis should in part facilitate convenience, that is far from the customer experience when interacting with certain businesses. Conversely, when customer identity and recognition involves layers of data gathered from across business units, coupled with advanced analytics and quality identity verification tools, businesses can present a more compelling, user-friendly approach that minimizes the stress placed on the customer while providing a positive customer experience. With this approach in mind, businesses can do a great deal to foster engagement which is secure and trusted by the customer. Our research determined that 86 percent of businesses state that advanced analytics is a strategic priority. Yet only 67 percent of businesses consider the use of advanced analytics, like artificial intelligence, to be important for fraud prevention, whereas only 57 percent deem advanced analytics as important for identifying customers. Even fewer respondents see a reason to adopt a hybrid approach involving machine learning involving both unsupervised and supervised models with business rule logic – 45 percent globally and with the United States and Japan as the outliers at 58 percent. However, when businesses pursue the adoption of more sophisticated authentication strategies and advanced fraud detection tools, they will improve their ability to identify and their customers, reducing their exposure to risk and ultimately leading to increased trust. Trust is the linchpin for any transaction and while it's easy to underestimate the importance of trust, given how difficult it is to measure and maintain, without it consumers and businesses will part ways. In a world with no shortage of data, with the right tools and methodology in place, businesses can mitigate various forms of risk, refine the customer experience, and foster the trust needed to support a mutually beneficial relationship between businesses and the customers they serve.

“Password Incorrect"Are businesses making progress identifying customers online, or are they continuing to frustrate those customers with archaic identification and authentication methods? Businesses engaging with their customers online walk a precarious tightrope between offering a frictionless experience and securing user accounts against fraud. But with ever-evolving technology, we look at how businesses can get a grip on the changing world of fraud while offering a great customer experience. While easy digital experiences matter to end-users, especially now that any physical customer interaction is temporarily on hold, make no mistake about it: security is the most important factor when it comes to building trust with your customers. In fact, our annual Global Identity & Fraud report, published in February 2020, found that 74% of consumers consider security the most important factor related to their willingness to conduct business online. Moreover, ease of access to their accounts was a close second, with 72% of respondents saying they want less friction and more user-friendly solutions. But keeping track of multiple, complex passwords across hundreds of digital accounts and running a gauntlet of authentication hurdles is the antithesis of what customers want. The Evolution of Identification Businesses that are truly committed to providing customers with a secure and frictionless experience online are moving beyond traditional fraud mitigation methods when it comes to customer identity. They're adding multiple intelligent layers, many of which are completely invisible to end users, to add security and enable the fast, easy access customers expect. Traditional analogue measures, like signature cards and face-to-face interactions with customers by a bank employee, are nearly extinct. Now, like those dinosaurs of the pre-internet world, many digital fraud protection measures are also being rendered obsolete because they just aren't robust enough to confidently identify customers. But technology can help businesses address this disparity. More sophisticated strategies, such as the development of machine learning and artificial intelligence, can provide faster and more accurate authentication – while being less intrusive user experiences. Technology for Trust Thanks in large part to the rapid growth of smartphones and mobile devices, we've seen more sophisticated methods of authentication. One of the most common forms of two-factor authentication today are the nearly ubiquitous one-time passcodes that are sent by email or text. This second layer of authentication ensures that the user is in possession of the hardware being used for access and has access to a confirmed email account or mobile device. A downside of using these codes for verification, however, is that the user has to access email or messaging, which adds friction to the process, and is still not (on its own) immune to fraudsters. There is no one-size-fits-all solution The white knight of trust is a dynamic approach to both identity verification and authentication. To accomplish this, businesses need to layer solutions that provide insight into devices and behaviors on top of traditional two-factor options. Then apply advanced analytics to stop fraud while allowing 99% of customers to breeze through sign-up and ongoing account access. Many of the latest identity authentication controls are 'passive', so customers won't even notice that they are happening, making the customer experience both secure and smooth. Passive authentication can include behavioral risk assessments that compare the device against historical activities from the customer as well as evaluate how the customer is inputting information or navigating the page. This, paired with other measures such as enrolling customers' biometrics and using them for ongoing account accesses, can help ensure a seamless online experience. Looking for the right signals across data sources can quickly flag risk and move the customer through the digital enrolment or login without unnecessary friction. Related articles: Covid-19 as a Gateway to Fraud: Top 5 Global Fraud Trends to Watch Out for in 2020

There isn’t a roadmap for navigating through times like these but the reality can’t be ignored. The effects of the pandemic will forever change how lending businesses operate and engage with customers long after the health crisis is over. Businesses and consumers have basically been pushed to engage with each other digitally en masse and there are practical challenges that banks and financial services are faced with today that need to be addressed. Some of these issues require short-term adjustments to manage things like increased volume of call center inquiries with a remote workforce. But other issues have put a spotlight on massive areas in need of modernization such as the management of liquidity and risk. Businesses need to think critically about how they will use technology and innovation to transform their credit risk and fraud operations to better serve customers across channels. Here are three cost-effective strategies that will connect you with your customers faster and in their greatest time of need – now and post-Covid. Respond to the change in a fair and consistent way. Regulatory bodies and credit risk policies are designed to prevent against unfair lending decisions. But when federal funding to provide stimulus and pressure for payment holidays take hold, it’s creating a lot of uncertainty for how to handle its impact on the portfolio. Strong operational decision management capabilities provide businesses a way to quickly test new strategies and deploy them. In fact, this isn’t all that new to large banks and financial institutions. But smaller banks have considered it “out-of-reach”, a perception that isn’t true nor acceptable at time when there are solutions available on the cloud. A huge benefit to moving your strategy management to the cloud is the ability to flex up or flex down your costs at time when balancing your cash flow and discretionary spend or technology investments is a top priority. Flexing up for increased customer demand to handle hardship or government-backed small business loans is going to be fundamental during this crisis, and where cloud-based strategy management will really pay off. A further benefit is that you remove the complexity of the IT infrastructure and get access to enhanced features whether it’s new data sources, models, or improvements to security. This is especially important as we all know, necessity is the mother of all innovation and there will be a need to get more from your current software without wanting to replace legacy systems. Models that drive decisioning still work. Despite the lack of historical precedent for the current scenario, data and analytics are very effective in this rapidly changing environment. For example, many people are facing financial hardship right now which means businesses need a way to efficiently receive and process applications that out-sort those in need of special servicing. Understanding who was headed into default prior to Covid-19 and who is experiencing short-term default because of this situational unemployment is key for delivering the right products and terms. In fact, if there is anything transferrable from the 2007/08 recession (which was entirely different from what the world is experiencing now), is that you need to use analytics to discern habits from new behaviors and ensure you don’t use vanilla treatments for both. Businesses will undoubtedly see their analytics teams overstretched during this period, so now is the time to reduce the manual load and invest in machine learning and AI. These advanced tools can offer the fastest and best results for getting the right analytical capabilities or models in place. For larger organizations, this will mean having the agility to rapidly update and deploy existing models, and for smaller ones, it will mean building this from the ground up. To help, our data scientists have recently identified over 140 consumer credit attributes that can offer some insights even in unprecedented times to: Identify financially stressed customers earlierPredict future payment behavior accuratelyRespond to profile changes faster Re-define the customer journey. Businesses should remove all unnecessary friction by inspecting the customer journey right down to every click and interaction. Why is this important? It remains to be seen exactly what customer behaviors and expectations will take hold but it’s likely to leave a lasting imprint. The contactless way consumers engage with businesses puts more and more pressure on how effectively they’re using data and customer insights to make their interaction relevant. Relevance in the form of – Do I recognize that this is my customer enrolling in or accessing their account(s) or is it suspicious?What do I know about this customer to proactively adjust or deliver a contextually appropriate offer or the terms they will accept?Are there signs of “mental drop-out” or abandonment that signal improvements to the experience are needed?How can I deliver the same experience across channels and simplify complex transactions, like enrollment?Do my customers feel secure and do they trust my business to protect their information? This is an opportunity for organizations to reflect upon how they do business, both in terms of how effectively they operate, but also in light of consumers changing expectations about the way that they want to engage with the wider community. Beyond the data, having an appropriate and empathetic response to customers who feel stuck can increase rapport, build loyalty, and open new possibilities to work together in the future. Related articles: Digitally managing your at-risk customers most impacted by Covid-19Proactively restructuring debt to help improve customer affordabilityPredicting customer payment behavior in a time of extreme uncertaintyStay connected to your customers in times of unexpected change

The speed at which the world is feeling the impact of Covid-19 is unparalleled. Because of this customer affordability has shifted into the unknown and businesses are trying to react quickly to assess customer risk in a brand-new context, albeit a temporary one. We look at the five key areas businesses should be considering when it comes to customer affordability. 1. Looking to insights The last financial crisis taught us that the first line of defense for many organizations, large and small, is to move straight into proactive debt restructuring to reduce the volume of customers who would otherwise fall immediately into debt collection. This crisis is no different, but identifying those in hardship, restructuring debt at speed, and in line with restricted policies are where businesses should be focusing to successfully tackle this. 2. Keeping regulators front of mind As a result of the last downturn, many financial regulators are placing a much higher weight of responsibility on lenders to make fair and transparent lending decisions when it comes to affordability. Not just when it comes to new lending, but also how they act and behave within collections. These rules are not going to be relaxed, so it’s important that businesses continue to prove that they remain compliant. 3. Predicting what’s to come Anticipating arrears before they happen, and at speed, is fundamental to managing the restructure of debt effectively. Especially where traditional data sources provide less predictive value. For businesses without advanced and automated debt restructure or collections-based program to begin with, this is an opportunity to develop something that will carry them through this time of crisis and beyond. 4. Harnessing analytics and AI Thinking predictively means getting the right analytical capabilities or models in place, ideally harnessing Machine Learning and AI to get the fastest and best results. For larger organizations, this will mean having the agility to rapidly update and deploy existing models, and for the less mature, it will mean building this from the ground up (but quickly). Businesses will undoubtedly see their analytics teams overstretched during this period, so now is the time to reduce the manual load and invest in these capabilities. 5. Automation for demand control Making sure customers can deal with organizations digitally will be critical to maintaining customer experience. It’s just as important to ensure that channels are integrated and automated in the backend. Businesses are looking to omni-channel digital solutions to help feed new demand through the funnel without having the added complication of a restricted workforce. It has never been more important to automate. More on Decision Analytics

Awareness is key for both businesses and their workforce when it comes to phishing fraud. But in a world where digital engagement has suddenly ramped up a notch (or ten), it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between what's real and what's not. Mike Gross, Head of Global Identity and Fraud at Experian, recently spoke to Jill Malandrino at Nasdaq Trade Talks about the key things to watch out for when it comes to phishing scams. Here's a round-up of what was discussed: New opportunities for phishing The global pandemic has opened up new routes for phishing scams. Fraudsters are great marketeers in a crisis, and they thrive on people's curiosity. From fake charity organizations claiming to be investing in Covid-19 related treatment to new government support schemes - if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Remote working Individuals are now forced to work from home but still have a responsibility to protect customer data. New processes have exposed gaps that fraudsters can exploit as there are typically fewer controls on home networks. Businesses must ensure that the right security is in place for their employees. regardless of the business size. Habits have shifted, and so have the fraudsters The pandemic will change the way we operate forever - how businesses enable remote workers, how consumers interact with commerce and how kids learn today - this is impacting our lives on the social side as well as the work side. Fraud will follow suit. Reacting to the crisis with a layered defense Phishing has dramatically increased, but phishing itself doesn't cause losses. It's the gaps in the controls - organizations may not have proper layered controls in place to defend themselves against these more sophisticated, or multi-channel attacks - that's what leads to the increases in losses. No one had a chance to prepare for this crisis - everything is different now than it was a month ago, from customer service, online demand, a flood of certain types of applications - businesses are not set up for the scale of demand. Listen to the full interview

Unlike your typical recession caused by a steady decrease in demand, today’s downturn was induced by the immediate mass closure of non-essential businesses. The frenzied pace that government and regulatory bodies have responded to reduce the impact on consumers with payment forgiveness or deferment programs has put a tremendous amount of pressure on lenders. It’s difficult to quickly understand the changes in credit profile of a previous solvent customer and to mobilize their operations teams to service these at-risk customers. Most companies but especially banks have been very proactive in digitally communicating with customers. They’ve been contacting consumers through email and posting messages to your accounts online offering to help. The problem will be when people start to experience financial difficulty, how do you support those consumers especially the vulnerable? Generally, the number of consumers who manage their debt month to month with low to no savings is the norm, that coupled with overall credit lines and debt utilization rates being at an all-time high creates somewhat of a perfect storm. With consumers facing unemployment or furlough at record numbers, the volume of people seeking hardship applications from their lender will skyrocket. According to the International Labour Organization, an estimated 2.7 billion workers, representing 81% of the world’s workforce, has been impacted leaving millions of workers vulnerable to income loss and layoffs. This rapid increase in demand is and will continue to overload Call Center operations who are already under strain and operating at a lower capacity. And really, aren’t we all? Call centers are staffed with people like you and me – working remotely or socially distancing, all the while juggling the needs of their families and communities.  And if it’s a lender who hadn’t yet made the digital transformation leap, these lenders could be putting additional pressure on systems that are difficult to access with a remote workforce. Implementing new software and operating rhythms in times of crisis is not ideal. Yet businesses don’t have the luxury of time and will need to evaluate their options and implement now. Here are 3 considerations for taking those first steps: Prioritize on-demand or cloud-first solutions for faster implementation Look for “as-a-service” options delivered in days versus months to help more customers faster Find operational efficiencies that support your employees and customers when it’s needed most Experian is helping businesses manage their at-risk customers whether they’re already in arrears or showing signs of payment stress for the first time. By linking digital communications channels to a collections platform and integrated decisioning environment, we’re helping address the significant increase in hardship demand with end to end treatment automation as a service. From the point of application, consumers drive the self-service interaction allowing businesses to quickly receive, accept/decline and process applications. Augmented with analytical insights for affordability and various types of propensity, businesses will better understand the actual financial position of a customer and be able to create a tailored treatment approach that’s sustainable. Whether short-term forbearance or true hardship is required, this can help reach more customers and free up call center teams to focus on more complex cases. It’s unlikely the economy will return to its pre-Covid conditions as rapidly as its declining, but your customers will trust your business if you were there for them in their greatest time of need.  We can help you stay connected with your customer while supporting them in a meaningful way through this especially difficult period.