EE launches Digital Identity platform to prevent fraud

EE has announced its new Digital Identity platform which it hopes will protect customers from becoming fraud victims. The platform consists of a number of tools including a SIM swap checker and a call diversion checker. EE has worked with several banks in the UK that can now leverage these tools to provide more security when authenticating customers.

The SIM Swap feature lets a business know when the customer’s SIM was last changed. According to EE, a recent SIM card switch could indicate fraud where an attacker is trying to intercept calls and texts without the account holder’s knowledge. With the new SIM Swap tool, banks will know when a SIM has been changed and can prevent a fraudulent transaction by requiring further identity checks.

The Call Divert feature, meanwhile, confirms that no call diversions have been set up for a phone number which a user didn’t intend to be there. An attacker could use call diversions to redirect calls to their own number to intercept communications, and this measure will prevent this from happening. Another feature called Know Your Customer helps businesses confirm someone’s ID by cross-referencing the information with EE’s databases, this check can be used to make sure a phone which has been reported as lost or stolen isn’t being used.

Commenting on the new platform, Christian Thrane, Managing Director of Consumer Marketing at BT said:

“At BT and EE, we are committed to innovating to help protect customers from fraud and are already working closely with a number of industries, including banking, eCommerce and gaming, to protect millions of transactions every day. We are continuing to move into new sectors to help prevent even more fraudulent activity, so consumers across the UK can be confident in the safety of their online experiences.”

The new tools all operate in the background so consumers do not need to do anything to benefit from the changes. Hopefully, they help reduce the instances of fraud, a practice that has adapted itself to the on-going coronavirus situation.