Latest news with #Jabbara
Kuwait Times
2 hours ago
- Business
- Kuwait Times
Visa's 24/7 war room takes on global cybercriminals
Payment giant has invested $12bn, building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities ASHBURN, US: In the heart of Data Center Alley — a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world's Internet traffic flows — Visa operates its global fraud command center. The numbers that the payments giant grapples with are enormous. Every year, $15 trillion flows through Visa's networks, representing roughly 15 percent of the world's economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money. Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication. To stay ahead, Visa has invested $12 billion over the past five years building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big. 'You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatized criminal organizations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities,' Michael Jabbara, Visa's global head of fraud solutions, told AFP during a tour of the company's security campus. 'These organizations are very structured in how they operate.' The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions. 'Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that's where we've seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently,' Jabbara said. The warning signs are clear: anything that seems too good to be true online is suspicious, and romance opportunities with strangers from distant countries are especially dangerous. 'What you don't realize is that the person you're chatting with is more likely than not in a place like Myanmar,' Jabbara warned. He said human-trafficking victims are forced to work in multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centers built by Asian crime networks in Myanmar's lawless border regions. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges — amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months. Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses. On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. 'You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network' to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down. Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for startups by eliminating the need to build servers, 'the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space,' Jabbara explained. These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale — using repeated payment attempts to crack a card's number, expiry date, and security code. The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Jabbara said. Some criminal organizations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. To combat these unprecedented threats, Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies. From a small room called the Risk Operations Center in Virginia, employees analyze data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. In the larger Cyber Fusion Center, staff monitor potential cyberattacks targeting Visa's own infrastructure around the clock. 'We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network,' Jabbara noted, emphasizing that most are handled automatically without human intervention. Visa maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance. – AFP
The Star
16 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Visa's 24/7 war room takes on global cybercriminals
From a small room called the Risk Operations centre in Virginia, employees analyse data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. — Pixabay ASHBURN, United States: In the heart of Data centre Alley – a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world's internet traffic flows – Visa operates its global fraud command centre. The numbers that the payments giant grapples with are enormous. Every year, US$15 trillion (RM63.55 trillion) flows through Visa's networks, representing roughly 15% of the world's economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money. Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication. To stay ahead, Visa has invested US$12bil (RM50.84bil) over the past five years building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big. "You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatised criminal organisations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities," Michael Jabbara, Visa's global head of fraud solutions, told AFP during a tour of the company's security campus. "These organisations are very structured in how they operate." The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions. "Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that's where we've seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently," Jabbara said. Scam centres The warning signs are clear: anything that seems too good to be true online is suspicious, and romance opportunities with strangers from distant countries are especially dangerous. "What you don't realise is that the person you're chatting with is more likely than not in a place like Myanmar," Jabbara warned. He said human-trafficking victims are forced to work in multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centres built by Asian crime networks in Myanmar's lawless border regions. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges – amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months. Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses. On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. "You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network" to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down. Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for startups by eliminating the need to build servers, "the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space," Jabbara explained. These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale – using repeated payment attempts to crack a card's number, expiry date, and security code. The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Jabbara said. Some criminal organisations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. 'Millions of attacks' To combat these unprecedented threats, Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies. From a small room called the Risk Operations centre in Virginia, employees analyse data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. In the larger Cyber Fusion centre, staff monitor potential cyberattacks targeting Visa's own infrastructure around the clock. "We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network," Jabbara noted, emphasising that most are handled automatically without human intervention. Visa maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance. – AFP
The Hindu
16 hours ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Visa's 24/7 war room takes on global cybercriminals
In the heart of Data Center Alley, a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world's internet traffic flows, Visa operates its global fraud command center. The numbers that the payments giant grapples with are enormous. Every year, $15 trillion flows through Visa's networks, representing roughly 15 percent of the world's economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money. Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication. To stay ahead, Visa has invested $12 billion over the past five years building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big. "You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatized criminal organisations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities," Michael Jabbara, Visa's global head of fraud solutions, told AFP during a tour of the company's security campus. "These organisations are very structured in how they operate." The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions. "Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that's where we've seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently," Jabbara said. The warning signs are clear: anything that seems too good to be true online is suspicious, and romance opportunities with strangers from distant countries are especially dangerous. "What you don't realize is that the person you're chatting with is more likely than not in a place like Myanmar," Jabbara warned. He said human-trafficking victims are forced to work in multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centers built by Asian crime networks in Myanmar's lawless border regions. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges, amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months. Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses. On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. "You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network" to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down. Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for startups by eliminating the need to build servers, "the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space," Jabbara explained. These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale, using repeated payment attempts to crack a card's number, expiry date, and security code. The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Jabbara said. Some criminal organisations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. To combat these unprecedented threats, Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies. From a small room called the Risk Operations Center in Virginia, employees analyse data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. In the larger Cyber Fusion Center, staff monitor potential cyberattacks targeting Visa's own infrastructure around the clock. "We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network," Jabbara noted, emphasising that most are handled automatically without human intervention. Visa maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance.
Straits Times
18 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Visa's war rooms in Singapore, US and UK take on global cyber criminals
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox - In the heart of Data Centre Alley – a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world's internet traffic flows – Visa operates its global fraud command centre. The payments giant maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance. The numbers that Visa grapples with are enormous. Every year, US$15 trillion (S$19 trillion) flows through its networks, representing roughly 15 per cent of the world's economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money. Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication. To stay ahead, Visa has invested US$12 billion over the past five years building artificial intelligence-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big. 'You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatised criminal organisations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities,' Visa's global head of fraud solutions Michael Jabbara told AFP during a tour of the company's security campus in Ashburn, Virginia. 'These organisations are very structured in how they operate.' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Construction starts on Cross Island Line phase 2; 6 MRT stations in S'pore's west ready by 2032 Singapore New SkillsFuture requirements by April 2026 to mandate regular training for adult educators Singapore MPs should not ask questions to 'clock numbers'; focus should be improving S'poreans' lives: Seah Kian Peng Singapore Sequencing and standards: Indranee on role of Leader of the House Singapore NUS College draws 10,000 applications for 400 places, showing strong liberal arts interest Life Rock band My Chemical Romance to perform in Singapore in April 2026 Singapore Life After... blazing biomedical research trail in S'pore: Renowned scientist breaks new ground at 59 Singapore More students in Singapore juggle studying and working to support their families The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions. 'Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that's where we've seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently,' Mr Jabbara said. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges – amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months. Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses. On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. Said Mr Jabbara: 'You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down.' Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for start-ups by eliminating the need to build servers, 'the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space', he explained. These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale – using repeated payment attempts to crack a card's number, expiry date and security code. The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Mr Jabbara said. Some criminal organisations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. 'Millions of attacks' To combat these unprecedented threats, Mr Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies. From a small room called the Risk Operations Centre in Virginia, employees analyse data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. In the larger Cyber Fusion Centre, staff monitor potential cyber attacks targeting Visa's own infrastructure around the clock. 'We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network,' Mr Jabbara noted, emphasising that most are handled automatically without human intervention. AFP
Business Times
19 hours ago
- Business
- Business Times
Visa's 24/7 war room takes on global cybercriminals
[ASHBURN, United States] In the heart of Data Centre Alley - a patch of suburban Washington where much of the world's internet traffic flows - Visa operates its global fraud command centre The numbers that the payments giant grapples with are enormous. Every year, US$15 trillion flows through Visa's networks, representing roughly 15 per cent of the world's economy. And bad actors constantly try to syphon off some of that money. Modern fraudsters vary dramatically in sophistication. To stay ahead, Visa has invested US$12 billion over the past five years building AI-powered cyber fraud detection capabilities, knowing that criminals are also spending big. 'You have everybody from a single individual threat actor looking to make a quick buck all the way to really corporatized criminal organisations that generate tens or hundreds of millions of dollars annually from fraud and scam activities,' Michael Jabbara, Visa's global head of fraud solutions, told AFP during a tour of the company's security campus. 'These organisations are very structured in how they operate.' A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies. Sign Up Sign Up The best-resourced criminal syndicates now focus on scams that directly target consumers, enticing them into purchases or transactions by manipulating their emotions. 'Consumers are continuously vulnerable. They can be exploited, and that's where we've seen a much higher incidence of attacks recently,' Jabbara said. Scam centers The warning signs are clear: anything that seems too good to be true online is suspicious, and romance opportunities with strangers from distant countries are especially dangerous. 'What you don't realise is that the person you're chatting with is more likely than not in a place like Myanmar,' Jabbara warned. He said human-trafficking victims are forced to work in multi-billion-dollar cyber scam centers built by Asian crime networks in Myanmar's lawless border regions. The most up-to-date fraud techniques are systematic and quietly devastating. Once criminals obtain your card information, they automatically distribute it across numerous merchant websites that generate small recurring charges - amounts low enough that victims may not notice for months. Some of these operations increasingly resemble legitimate tech companies, offering services and digital products to fraudsters much like Google or Microsoft cater to businesses. On the dark web, criminals can purchase comprehensive fraud toolkits. 'You can buy the software. You can buy a tutorial on how to use the software. You can get access to a mule network on the ground or you can get access to a bot network' to carry out denial-of-service attacks that overwhelm servers with traffic, effectively shutting them down. Just as cloud computing lowered barriers for startups by eliminating the need to build servers, 'the same type of trend has happened in the cyber crime and fraud space,' Jabbara explained. These off-the-shelf services can also enable bad actors to launch brute force attacks on an industrial scale -- using repeated payment attempts to crack a card's number, expiry date, and security code. The sophistication extends to corporate-style management, Jabbara said. Some criminal organizations now employ chief risk officers who determine operational risk appetite. They might decide that targeting government infrastructure and hospitals generates an excessive amount of attention from law enforcement and is too risky to pursue. 'Millions of attacks' To combat these unprecedented threats, Jabbara leads a payment scam disruption team focused on understanding criminal methodologies. From a small room called the Risk Operations Centre in Virginia, employees analyze data streams on multiple screens, searching for patterns that distinguish fraudulent activity from legitimate credit card use. In the larger Cyber Fusion Centre, staff monitor potential cyberattacks targeting Visa's own infrastructure around the clock. 'We deal with millions of attacks across different parts of our network,' Jabbara noted, emphasizing that most are handled automatically without human intervention. Visa maintains identical facilities in London and Singapore, ensuring 24-hour global vigilance. AFP
