Lloyds Bank to make 1 major change to app – good news for customers | Personal Finance | Finance

Lloyds Bank is set to launch a new tool to help protect customers from shopping scams. The bank’s Scam Check tool is set to appear in certain payment journeys in their banking app “soon”, and will “step in when a customer could be at risk of sending money to a fraudster for something that looks good, but is likely to be a scam”, the high street giant says.

The tool will be integrated into Lloyds Bank‘s app, as well as those of Halifax and Bank of Scotland, which are also owned by Lloyds Banking Group. Lloyds Bank said that when customers attempt to pay someone new for an online purchase, if Scam Check thinks the purchase could be a scam, a few simple questions will appear, asking customers to upload screenshots of the item they are planning to buy.

The bank says it will use AI to scan the information provided and issue a warning if the deal appears suspicious. In many cases, it will intervene before customers realise they may be being targeted, it added.

Red flags it will be on the lookout for include:

• The price being too good to be true
• The seller’s account being new or having no ratings
• There being only a vague description of item
• If a deposit is required
• Urgency or pressure tactics often used by scammers

Lloyds has said the new anti-scam feature will arrive later this year, but hasn’t given a specific date. Express.co.uk has approached the bank for more information.

Liz Ziegler, fraud prevention director at Lloyds, said “Scams are becoming more convincing, targeted and emotionally manipulative, making them harder to spot and we need to use all the tech and tools we can to fight back.

“Scam Check will be the newest way we address the enormous threat of online scams, designed to step in at the right moment, spot the warning signs earlier and support customers before money can leave their account.

“By continuing to combine cutting-edge technology, with the expert judgement of our colleagues, we’re helping customers stay one step ahead of scammers.”

Lord David Hanson, Minister for Fraud, said: “Fraudsters will stop at nothing to take your hard-earned money. I welcome Lloyds’ plans to introduce Scam Check and urge everyone to Stop! Think Fraud to protect themselves and those close to you.”

“We’re investing £250 million as part of our new Fraud Strategy to crackdown on this criminality. We will use every tool at our disposal to dismantle criminal networks, bring fraudsters to justice and strengthen protections for victims.”