Banking app launches extra secure holiday mode to protect tourists from pickpockets

A banking app has launched a new feature which stops pickpockets and phone snatchers from getting into your hand earned holiday savings.

Revolut’s new feature, Wealth Protection, includes biometric identification which helps to protect customers’ savings when their phone is stolen by pickpockets. The feature will launch this month, ahead of a busy summer season expected to reach recording breaking numbers, for travel.

According to Revolut, customers on average hold over two times more money in their savings account compared to their current account. The feature will help to protect customers who have had their unlocked phone stolen, or password and face recognition compromised, and stops criminals from withdrawing customers’ savings out of their accounts.

Many banking apps rely on biometric authorisation, such as facial or fingerprint recognition, for users to open their app. However, this can still leave customers vulnerable when a pickpocket gains access to their device and changes the registered fingerprint or facial image, to their own.

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In comparison, Revolut’s new feature will verify the identity of the user against selfie ID checks that the customer completes when first signing up to Revolut. The feature, which requires customers to opt-in, can be turned on for savings.

Physical theft was responsible for 38% of all unauthorised fraud losses in 2023 and pickpocketing is surging globally. In London, for example, a phone is stolen every six minutes. Revolut warns that customers are also at a heightened risk of ‘shoulder-surfing,’ where fraudsters first identify phone and banking-app passwords and then use this to bypass security measures, as well as having their phone taken whilst unlocked.

Woody Malouf, head of financial crime at Revolut, said: “With phone thefts on the rise, Wealth Protection has been built to counteract theft by providing our customers with that extra layer of security when you’re out and about this summer.”