U.S. patent application number 12/749776 was filed with the patent office on 2010-09-09 for method and system for detecting fraud in a credit card transaction over the internet.
Invention is credited to JOHN PHILIP PETTITT.
Application Number | 20100228649 12/749776 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36821816 |
Filed Date | 2010-09-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100228649 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
PETTITT; JOHN PHILIP |
September 9, 2010 |
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DETECTING FRAUD IN A CREDIT CARD TRANSACTION
OVER THE INTERNET
Abstract
A method and system for detecting fraud in a credit card
transaction between consumer and a merchant over the internet. The
method and system comprises obtaining credit card information
relating to the transaction from the consumer; and verifying the
credit card information based upon a variety of parameters. The
variety of parameters are weighted so as to provide a merchant with
a quantifiable indication of whether the credit card transaction is
fraudulent. In so doing, an integrated verification system is
provided which allows a merchant, or the like, to accurately and
efficiently determine the validity of a transaction over the
internet.
Inventors: |
PETTITT; JOHN PHILIP; (Los
Altos, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Christopher J. Palermo;Hickman Palermo Truong & Becker LLP
Suite 550, 2055 Gateway Place
San Jose
CA
95110-1089
US
|
Family ID: |
36821816 |
Appl. No.: |
12/749776 |
Filed: |
March 30, 2010 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
12175191 |
Jul 17, 2008 |
|
|
|
12749776 |
|
|
|
|
11168966 |
Jun 27, 2005 |
|
|
|
12175191 |
|
|
|
|
09442106 |
Nov 17, 1999 |
7096192 |
|
|
11168966 |
|
|
|
|
08901687 |
Jul 28, 1997 |
6029154 |
|
|
09442106 |
|
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/30 ; 707/705;
707/E17.044 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 20/10 20130101;
G06Q 20/4016 20130101; G06Q 30/0225 20130101; G06Q 20/24 20130101;
G06Q 20/40 20130101; G06Q 30/0635 20130101; G06Q 50/265 20130101;
G06Q 40/00 20130101; G06Q 40/12 20131203; G06Q 30/0609 20130101;
G06Q 30/0601 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/30 ; 707/705;
707/E17.044 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 10/00 20060101
G06Q010/00; G06Q 40/00 20060101 G06Q040/00; G06F 17/30 20060101
G06F017/30 |
Claims
1. A system for detecting fraud in a credit card transaction
between consumer and a merchant over the internet comprising: means
for obtaining credit card information relating to the transaction
from the consumer; means for verifying the credit card information
based upon a plurality of parameters comprising: a) means for
obtaining information about other transactions that have utilized
an internet address that is identified with the credit card
transaction; b) means for constructing a map of credit card numbers
based upon the other transactions; c) means for utilizing the map
of credit card numbers to determine if the credit card transaction
is valid.
2. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of parameters
include a consistency check, a history check, an automatic
verification system and an internet identification system.
3. The system of claim 2 wherein the history check includes a
database which can be accessed and supplemented by other
merchants.
4. The system of claim 2 wherein the internet identification system
includes a database which can be accessed and supplemented by other
merchants.
5. A computer readable medium containing program instructions for
detecting fraud in a credit card transaction between consumer and a
merchant over the internet, the program instructions configured
for: obtaining credit card information relating to the transaction
from the consumer; verifying the credit card information based upon
a plurality of parameters by: a) obtaining information about other
transactions that have utilized an internet address that is
identified with the credit card transaction; b) constructing a map
of credit card numbers based upon the other transactions and; c)
utilizing the map of credit card numbers to determine if the credit
card transaction is valid.
6. The computer readable medium of claim 5 wherein the plurality of
parameters include a consistency check, a history check, an
automatic verification system and an internet identification
system.
7. The computer readable medium of claim 6 wherein the history
check includes a database which can be accessed and supplemented by
other merchants.
8. The computer readable medium of claim 6 wherein the internet
identification system includes a database which can be accessed and
supplemented by other merchants.
Description
BENEFIT CLAIM; CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit and domestic priority
under 35 U.S.C. 120 as a Continuation of prior application Ser. No.
12/175,191, filed Jul. 17, 2008, which is a Continuation of Ser.
No. 11/168,966, filed Jun. 27, 2005, which is a Continuation of
Ser. No. 09/442,106, filed Nov. 17, 1999, which is a Continuation
of Ser. No. 08/901,687, filed Jul. 28, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No.
6,029,154, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by
reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates generally to credit card
transactions and specifically to detecting fraud in such credit
card transactions when ordering and downloading information over
the internet.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Credit card transactions are being utilized in a variety of
environments. In a typical environment a user provides a merchant
with a credit card, and the merchant through various means will
verify whether that information is accurate. For example, referring
now to FIG. 1, a typical credit card verification system 10 is
shown. In such a system, a merchant 12 receives a credit card from
the customer 14. The merchant then verifies the credit card
information through an automated verification system 16.
[0004] These systems work well in a credit card transaction in
which either the customer has a face-to-face meeting with the
merchant or the merchant is actually shipping a package or the like
to the address of a customer. The verification procedure typically
includes in the AVS system address information and identity
information. However, when downloading information from an online
service or the internet, the address and identity information is
not enough for to adequately verify that the customer who is
purchasing the goods is actually the owner of the credit card. For
example, an individual may have both the name and the address of a
particular credit card holder and that information in a normal
transaction may be sufficient for authorization of such a
transaction. However, as an internet transaction it is possible to
have all the correct information related to the particular credit
card holder through unscrupulous means, and therefore, be able to
fraudulently obtain information.
[0005] Accordingly, what is needed is a system and method that
overcomes the problems associated with a typical verification
systems for credit card transactions particularly in the internet
or online services environment. The system should be easily
implemented within the existing environment and should also be
straightforwardly applied to existing technology. The present
invention addresses such a need.
SUMMARY
[0006] A method and system for detecting fraud in a credit card
transaction between consumer and a merchant over the internet. The
method and system comprises obtaining credit card information
relating to the transaction from the consumer; and verifying the
credit card information based upon a variety of parameters. The
variety of parameters are weighted so as to provide a merchant with
a quantifiable indication of whether the credit card transaction is
fraudulent. In so doing, an integrated verification system is
provided which allows a merchant, or the like, to accurately and
efficiently determine the validity of a transaction over the
internet.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is diagram of the prior art verification system for
credit card transaction.
[0008] FIG. 2 is a verification system in accordance with the
present invention.
[0009] FIG. 3 is a flow chart of the verification system in
accordance with the present invention.
[0010] FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the integrated verification system
in accordance with the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0011] The present invention relates to a fraud detection for use
in credit card transaction over online services or the internet.
The following description is presented to enable one of ordinary
skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in
the context of a patent application and its requirements. Various
modifications to the preferred embodiment will be readily apparent
to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may
be applied to other embodiments. Thus, the present invention is not
intended to be limited to the embodiment shown but is to be
accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and
features described herein.
[0012] The present invention provides an integrated verification
system for credit cards transactions over an online service or the
internet. Referring now to FIG. 2, what is shown is a block diagram
of a system 100 which would use the verification procedure in
accordance with the present invention. System 100 includes similar
to FIG. 1, a customer 102 and a merchant 104. The customer 102
provides the merchant with a credit card, the merchant then sends
it to an integrated verification system IVS 106 which includes a
variety of parameters providing consistency, history and other
information in an integrated fashion to determine the credit card
holder's validity. The IVS 106 is typically implemented in software
for example in a hard disk, floppy disk or other computer-readable
medium. In a typical embodiment, when the customer 102 orders a
particular piece of software to be downloaded from a merchant 104,
the merchant will provide the credit card number, e-mail address
and other pertinent information to the IVS 106. The integrated
verification system 106 then weights the variety of parameters so
as to provide a merchant with a quantifiable indication on whether
the credit and transaction is fraudulent. To more clearly describe
the operation of a system and method in accordance with the present
invention, refer now to the following discussion in conjunction
with the accompanying figures.
[0013] FIG. 3 shows a simple block diagram for providing an
integrated verification of a credit card transaction over the
internet. The IVS 106 includes a controller 212 which receives the
credit information from the merchant and then sends that
information on to a variety of parameters 202-208. The plurality of
parameters that operate on the information to provide an indication
of whether the transaction is valid. In this embodiment, the
plurality of parameters comprises a history check 202, a
consistency check 204, an automatic verification system 206 and an
internet identification verification system 208. The output or
individual indications of validity of these parameters are provided
to fraud detector 210. The fraud detector 210 combines these inputs
to provide an integrated indication of whether the particular
transaction is valid.
[0014] Consistency check 204 allows one to determine whether the
credit information is consistent, i.e., does the credit information
match the user and other information. AVS system 206 provides
similar information as AVS 16 described in FIG. 1. A key feature of
both the history database and the internet ID database is that they
can be accessed and the information there within can be
supplemented by a variety of other merchants and, therefore,
information from those merchants is obtainable thereby.
[0015] History information check 202 is provided which also
accesses a database 222 which may include card number and email
information. The history check 202 will also actively determine if
the particular transaction matches previous database information
within the history database 222. Therefore, the internet ID
verification system and history check increases in utility over
time. The internet ID verification system 208 provides for a system
for verifying the validity of an internet address, the details of
which will be discussed hereinafter. The internet identification
verification system similar to the history check includes a
database 224 which can be added to by other merchants.
[0016] In addition, the internet identification verification system
208 accesses and communicates with a database of internet
addresses. This system will be used to verify whether the internet
address is consistent with other internet addresses being used in
transactions utilizing this credit card.
[0017] These different parameters are weighted via weighting blocks
214-220, respectively, dependent upon the particular credit card
transaction. For example, if the amount of dollar transaction is
critical, it may be appropriate for the history and AVS system 202
and 204 to be weighted more critically than the other parameters.
On the other hand, if a critical point is the consistency of the
internet address, then the consistency check 204 and the internet
identification system 208 may be more critical. Accordingly, each
of the verification parameters 202-208 may be weighted in different
amounts depending upon its importance in the verification
process.
[0018] A particularly important feature of the present invention is
the internet identification system 208 and its operation within the
integrated verification system 106. Through this system 208, it is
possible to quickly determine if an internet identification address
is being utilized fraudulently. To describe this feature in more
detail, refer now to FIG. 4 and the accompanying discussion.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the internet identification
verification system 208. The goal of internet identification
verification system 208 is to determine whether the physical
address or the physical location of the address compares to a
previous physical location that was used for that particular
internet address. Accordingly, in the flow chart of FIG. 4, first
the number of transactions that had been processed using that
particular internet address is obtained from the database 224, via
step 302. Thereafter, a map of those transactions is constructed
based on those obtained transactions, via step 304. Finally, the
constructed map is used to determine if the new credit card
transaction is valid, via step 306. Accordingly, through a system
and method in accordance with this system, an internet
identification verification system is provided which can quickly
and easily determine whether a particular internet address is
related to a particular credit care transaction.
[0020] Accordingly, what is provided is a system and method for
accurately determining whether a particular credit card transaction
is a fraudulent one. The integrated verification system in
accordance with the present invention provides for weighting the
variety of parameters so as to provide a merchant with a
quantifiable indication on whether the credit and transaction is
fraudulent.
[0021] Although the present invention has been described in
accordance with the embodiments shown, one of ordinary skill in the
art will recognize that there could be variations to the embodiment
and those variations would be within the spirit and scope of the
present invention. Therefore, although the present invention was
described in terms of a particular verification system, one of
ordinary skill in the art readily recognizes, that any number of
parameters can be utilized and their use would be within the spirit
and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, many modifications
may be made by one of ordinary skill without departing from the
spirit and scope of the present invention, the scope of which is
defined by the following claims.
* * * * *