By Steve Conley, Academy of Life Planning
March 24, 2025
In a financial landscape too often marred by fraud and exploitation, it’s refreshing—indeed, inspiring—to see a global powerhouse like Visa making real progress in the battle for market integrity.
In just its first year, Visa’s dedicated Scam Disruption Practice, part of its Payment Ecosystem Risk and Control (PERC) team, has already prevented over £335 million in attempted fraud. That’s not just a statistic—it’s a lifeline for victims and a signal to scammers that the tide is turning.
This is not business as usual. Visa’s approach is both high-tech and deeply human. It has invested more than £11 billion in network security and anti-fraud technology over the last five years—but the real innovation lies in blending AI-driven analysis with expert human insight.
Their Scam Disruption Unit (VSD) doesn’t just react—it anticipates. Former law enforcement professionals, military strategists, and data visualisation experts work alongside AI developers to identify scam patterns and pre-empt attacks. This interdisciplinary strategy allows Visa to uncover scam networks operating across borders and platforms—scams that traditional systems might miss.
One case stood out. A sophisticated network using 450+ fake merchant sites scammed UK and European cardholders via social media ads. Thanks to VSD’s intervention, 75% of the compromised cards were protected, preventing an additional £413 million in losses. The entire infrastructure behind the fraud was dismantled.
This is justice in action.
What’s particularly encouraging is Visa’s acknowledgement of the human cost of fraud. Michael Jabbara, Global Head of PERC, said it best: “Fraud usually has no face, but a scam is personal.” By focusing on victims’ experiences and collaborating with law enforcement and partners across the ecosystem, Visa is restoring trust—something the financial industry desperately needs.
As someone who has long championed transparency, consumer protection, and financial empowerment, I find this development both heartening and hopeful. Visa’s initiative is not just a corporate defence strategy—it’s a blueprint for how we can and must work together to build a financial system rooted in integrity, empathy, and proactivity.
This is the kind of news that lifts the spirits—and reminds us why we keep pushing forward.
Academy of Life Planning 