Amazon, in its fight against fraudulent practices involving impersonation by one person as another, uses several tactics.
The e-commerce giant posted a publication in its blog last Tuesday, March 5, noting that the company is taking a multifaceted approach to countering illegal activities by fraudsters. Amazon’s vision includes applying advanced technologies to improve the security of customer accounts, launching educational initiatives that provide individuals with the knowledge necessary to recognize genuine messages, and collaborating with law enforcement officials.
By 2023, the e-commerce giant, as part of its efforts to combat fraud, managed to achieve a result in the form of a reduction in the number of victims of criminals of the relevant criminal profile by 15%. In this case, significant work was done by Amazon employees, including machine learning specialists, and investigators who were actively involved in stopping fraudulent transactions.
It is worth noting that cybercrime is currently what can be described as a scalable phenomenon. The corresponding illegal activities are expanding and intensifying. This trend is largely due to the process of mass digitalization. As part of the mentioned trend, more and more actions included in the structure of human activity, both professional and conventional every day, are carried out in virtual space. Moreover, cybercriminals monitor the development of new-generation technologies and strive to gain access to such developments, which they often succeed. Also, the growing use of the Internet creates a kind of area of opportunity for fraudsters to achieve criminal goals, aimed primarily at making a profit.
Data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) of the United States shows that in 2022, American consumers suffered losses amounting to $8.8 billion as a result of fraud applied to them. The Global Anti-Scam Alliance reports that similar financial losses at the global level last year amounted to more than $1 trillion.
Many scammers imitate Amazon as part of their illegal activities. In this case, consumers receive messages about problems that actually do not exist. As part of such fraudulent schemes, fictitious stories are most often practiced about certain difficulties associated with customer orders, or about various kinds of complications relating to accounts.
A post on the e-commerce giant’s blog notes that criminals are using unsolicited contacts via email, phone calls, text messages, social media, and other means of communication to impersonate real-life, well-known brands and institutions, including Amazon. As part of this tactic, fraudulent schemes are created aimed at manipulating victims.
Amazon, in collaboration with Microsoft and India’s Central Bureau of Investigation to combat crimes aimed at defrauding people, has achieved significant attainments. As a result of this partnership, more than 70 fraudulent call centers were shut down in the South Asian country.
Amazon is also raising awareness among customers to ensure their safety. The company provides advice on shopping on virtual platforms. By following these recommendations, clients can secure their financial activities on the Internet. It is worth noting that the personal efforts of each user are also effective in countering attacks by fraudsters. For example, information about signs of unauthorized access to a device can be obtained using a query in an Internet search engine, such as, for example, how to know if my camera is hacked. Time spent studying the manifestations of hidden criminal activity will help protect financial resources and personal data.
The e-commerce giant has launched the Amazon.com/ReportAScam tool, which is available in more than 20 languages, as part of its efforts to combat fraud. This tool is designed to encourage reporting of criminal activity in the mentioned category. The e-commerce giant notes that the experience of those who have faced attacks from fraudsters helps combat the concerned illegal activities. To stop crime, it is important to know the methods of those who seek to make a profit by deceiving people who believe that representatives of famous brands are communicating with them.
Amazon has also formed a team of specialists to provide support to customers who believe they probably have been victims of fraud. In this context, the e-commerce giant notes that crimes have not only material but also social and emotional consequences.
The company notes that consolidating efforts across industries and globally will help create a world where consumers can navigate their lives without fear of potential fraud. The e-commerce giant is committed to developing collaborations to achieve the mentioned ambitious goal.
The FTC is also making efforts to combat impersonation scams. The agency in February proposed a new set of rules prohibiting impersonation of individuals. The FTC also stated its intention to use all of its tools to detect, deter, or stop fraud in the categories mentioned. Agency Chair Lina M. Khan said protecting United States residents from criminal impersonation schemes designed to defraud has become increasingly important as cases of voice cloning and other artificial intelligence-based techniques increase.
