Indian fintech firm, ZestMoney is using a mobile risk intelligence platform, provided by Singapore-based SHIELD, to supplement its existing fraud detection capabilities.
ZestMoney provides customers with digital EMI (equated monthly instalment) financing without the need for a credit card or a credit score.
SHIELD, which counts Razer and Alibaba among its customers, provides products that span fraud prevention, network security, credit intelligence, and identity verification.
The Indian company plans to use SHIELD’s capabilities to detect and pre-emptively plug potential security vulnerabilities.
ZestMoney’s Chief Data Officer, Natalia Lyarskaya, said the security of their more than 17 million registered users was important.
“Along with in-house infrastructure, SHIELD's device intelligence complements efforts to further drive and scale credit inclusion in a safe and secure manner,” Lyarskaya said.
The company plans to make “credit accessible” to new customers particularly those without a prior or adequate credit history.
However, with an “uptick” in the preference of consumers to use digital EMI and check-out finance, fraudsters deploy tactics like social engineering to get consumers' credentials, she added.
Fraudsters “spoof” physical devices, making it appear like hundreds or even thousands of “unique digital devices” are logging in to create fake accounts.
To combat this, ZestMoney will be using SHIELD’s machine learning (ML)-based device intelligence solution to gain “rich device-based insights for better credit decisions and minimise fraud”, Lyarskaya said.
ZestMoney aims to use SHIELD’s capabilities that use the device identification approach as it allows linking fake devices to a single physical device.
Additionally, trust indicators from SHIELD will enable a comprehensive risk profiling, thereby improving the credit approval decision-making process, and minimising loan defaults, Lyarskaya said.
SHIELD’s founder and CEO, Justin Lie, said that amid the burgeoning digital EMI market, “trust” is the key to encouraging the adoption of such services.
