Visa Says It Blocked $40 Billion in Fraud Transactions Last Year

Visa Inc. said it blocked a record amount of suspected fraud last year, culminating in a boom in criminal activity during the holiday season.

The San Francisco-based payments giant said blocked transactions in the US were up more than 450% year-on-year in December, according to figures shared with Bloomberg News.

Globally over the whole year, Visa said it blocked $40 billion-worth of suspected fraud, nearly double the $23 billion seen in the year before.

“The security trends over the past few years show that the nature of fraud and cybercrime is ever shifting, much like squeezing a balloon,” said Michael ...