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IPSO Card Services

IPSO Card Services (IPSO CS) was established to examine security and fraud related issues affecting the card payments industry as well as monitoring legal and regulatory changes both at a domestic and European level. IPSO CS is governed by the IPSO Card Payments Group, the senior level decision-making body on card payment strategy.

Card Payments Group

The use of payment cards (i.e. credit and debit cards) in Ireland has grown considerably in recent years as they are increasingly recognised as a cost efficient and convenient alternative payment method to cash and cheques. The use of payment cards is dependent on consumer confidence in such cards and in particular, in the security measures surrounding their use.

In order to facilitate this continued expansion in the use of payment cards and to further improve security measures in connection with their use for the benefit of consumers, card issuers and acquirers, the Card Payments Group (CPG) was established. The group is comprised of senior executives from the card issuing and acquiring institutions operating in the Republic of Ireland. It explores how security issues such as payment card fraud can best be addressed within the card payments industry for the benefit of all stakeholders.

The CPG also examines the impact on the card payments industry of legal and regulatory changes and looks at opportunities for the development of card payments in Ireland. In addition, a number of working groups have been established under the auspices of the CPG to address specific non-competitive card industry issues, such as fraud.

IPSO Card Fraud Forum

The IPSO Card Fraud Forum (CFF) facilitates non-competitive information sharing on card fraud issues and extends this to all card types (i.e. credit, debit, store card and ATM cards and terminals). The group discusses and implements strategic fraud prevention initiatives for the card payments industry. Specifically, the IPSO CFF takes a supervisory role in strategic fraud investigations and implementation of fraud prevention initiatives by IPSO Card Services and also explores opportunities with foreign fraud prevention agencies to contain and reduce cross-border fraud.

The CFF comprises a senior fraud manager from each of the card issuers and acquirers operating within the Republic of Ireland as well as representatives from Visa, MasterCard, Laser Card, the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation and the Irish Banking Federation.

 

IPSO CS collates statistics on fraud trends from this group on a quarterly basis to ensure that the group maintains its focus on the most serious card fraud issues.

Information shared and gathered through the CFF is used by IPSO CS staff to provide consumers, retailers and interest groups with the most up to date information on fraud affecting the card payments industry in Ireland and more importantly on potential solutions to preventing those frauds. IPSO CS holds conferences, seminars and workshops for the general public to facilitate the sharing of this information. To ensure that up to date fraud and fraud prevention information is always available to the general public IPSO set up the website www.safecard.ie. 

SafeCard

SafeCard is the name given to a task force which operates under the direction of the IPSO Card Fraud Forum to promote the safe usage of payment cards. IPSO regularly carries out SafeCard campaigns to educate merchants and consumers about the harmful effects of card fraud and it provides simple, yet effective, fraud prevention advice.

On the SafeCard website retailers can find relevant information and downloadable training material on card fraud prevention as well as relevant industry contact details. Cardholders can find tips on how to keep their cards safe from criminal hands. SafeCard information campaigns include retailer seminars, direct marketing, trade fair demonstrations, national press and trade magazine advertising. The key fraud issues currently on the SafeCard agenda include eCommerce fraud and use of copied cards in countries where Chip & PIN has not yet been implemented. For further information visit the SafeCard website at www.safecard.ie.