Westpac joins forces with Optus to launch new in-app SafeCall feature
Westpac has sought to eradicate scam calls by introducing a new in-app calling feature in partnership with Aussie telecom Optus.
Westpac develops new SafeCall feature with Optus
The new feature, called SafeCall, seeks to legitimise bank-to-consumer phone calls by integrating the function directly into the existing Westpac digital banking app.
When the bank calls, customers will be served with Westpac-branded alerts and an Optus verification tag to ensure them of the call’s validity.
Customers will also be presented with a reason for the call, with the service to be made available to all customers, irrespective of their telco provider, through a gradual rollout planned for the coming months.
SafeCall will work alongside other measures instated by Westpac to protect customers, including SaferPay, which seeks to limit the potential rise of authorised push payment scams specifically by generating a series of questions for payments carrying a high scam risk.
The bank has also compiled a “do not originate” list comprising 94,000 Westpac numbers to prevent its official communication channels from being impersonated by scammers.
With these existing measures, the bank claims to have prevented scammers from snatching AUD 400 million in customer funds over the past two years, an ability it hopes will be reinforced with the advent of its latest innovation with Optus.
Westpac CEO Peter King says the technology “will help to provide customers with the confidence and added security to help beat scammers and know that they really are talking to their bank”.
“We’re continuing to invest in scam prevention and detection measures and are currently detecting 69% of all scam cases. Westpac SafeCall will help us reduce bank impersonation scams and make Australia an even harder target for scammers,” he adds.
The development comes after the bank confirmed in a market update published in April that it would invest between AUD 1.8 billion and AUD 2 billion into upgrading its technology by 2028.
