Eleven tech giants and major retailers have signed a new scam initiative , ahead of a global fraud summit hosted by the United Nations.
Anti-scam initiative
The Industry Accord Against Online Scams & Fraud recognizes the increasing use of artificial intelligence by criminal groups to create more convincing scams and emphasizes collaboration between companies to address this issue.
See also: New ways to protect against fraud on Facebook, WhatsApp and Messenger
Google, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, Adobe, Pinterest, Target, Levi's Strauss & Co. and Match Group (owner of Tinder and Hinge), signed the agreement. What is striking is that Apple, one of the largest technology companies, is not on the list.
“We can’t solve this alone,” said Karen Courington, a Google executive. “We need others from across the industry to join us in addressing the threats.”
See also: Meta: Removes end-to-end encryption from Instagram DMs
The agreement has four main objectives:
- Prevention: Develop and implement actions to prevent fraud, including strong security features, artificial intelligence-powered detection systems, and clear usage policies.
- Collaboration and Collective Learning: Increase collaboration and lawful information sharing between industry and law enforcement agencies to further (i) identify financial fraud, particularly when committed by international criminal organizations; (ii) protect consumers; and (iii) improve shared understanding of fraud, countermeasures, and evolving threats.
- Resilience: Supporting secure digital transformation and developing defensive tools, such as AI-based solutions and other improved technological solutions, and being able to react quickly and proportionately to changes and fraud incidents.
- Public awareness: Participate in joint efforts to educate the public about scams and digital literacy, as well as ways in which citizens can protect themselves.
The agreement emphasizes that sharing information about new fraud techniques between technology companies and retailers will be vital to combating a rapidly growing problem that is estimated to cost consumers $442 billion annually.
See also: Meta disabled 150,000 scam accounts linked to Asian fraud centers
It is not known why Apple has not signed the agreement. It is possible that Apple Intelligence is not yet a “mature enough technology” to be used by fraudsters.
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