Fraud Response Needs to Move at the Speed of Fraud

By Shamir Rajadurai, PhD.
International Speaker & Consultant | Criminologist | CPTED & Crime Prevention Specialist | Cyber Crime

A True Story: When Even the Bank Isn’t Sure

A friend of mine received an email that appeared to come from his bank. Shortly afterward, he received a phone call as well.

Something about the communication didn’t feel right.

Rather than assuming it was legitimate, or immediately declaring it a scam, we did what customers are repeatedly advised to do:

Contact the bank directly and verify.

So we called the bank using the official contact information.

During the call, we were asked to provide several personal details. After explaining the situation, we expected a straightforward answer: Is this legitimate, or is it a scam?

Instead, we were told that they were not sure.

Someone would call us back.

An hour later, we were still waiting.

And that waiting period highlights a much bigger problem with the way we approach fraud prevention.

What Happens While the Customer Is Waiting?

Banks, financial institutions, technology companies and governments regularly tell people:

“If you’re unsure, contact your bank.”

That is good advice.

But it only works when the organization receiving that call is equipped to provide a timely and confident response.

Fraudsters don’t operate on the same timetable as traditional customer-service processes.

A legitimate investigation might take time.

A scammer doesn’t need time.

They need seconds.

While a customer is waiting for a callback, the criminal could already be:

• Sending another fraudulent email.
• Making another phone call.
• Creating a sense of urgency.
• Impersonating a bank employee.
• Sending a malicious link.
• Attempting to obtain an OTP or authentication code.
• Manipulating the victim into transferring money.

The longer the uncertainty lasts, the more opportunity the criminal has.

Fraud Is a Race Against Time

We often talk about fraud prevention in terms of awareness:

Don’t click suspicious links.
Don’t share your OTP.
Don’t trust unexpected calls.
Verify before making a payment.

All of these messages are important.

But awareness alone is not enough.

Fraud prevention also requires speed of response.

Imagine a customer receives a suspicious message at 2:00 PM.

They notice something is wrong.

At 2:05 PM, they contact the bank.

At 2:15 PM, the case is transferred.

At 2:30 PM, they are told someone will investigate.

At 3:30 PM, there is still no answer.

For the customer, this may feel like a frustrating delay.

For a fraudster, it can be an entire window of opportunity.

The Human Factor Still Matters

Technology has transformed financial crime.

Artificial intelligence, social engineering, deepfakes, phishing, spoofed phone numbers and increasingly convincing impersonation techniques have made scams harder to identify.

But the human element remains at the center of many attacks.

Criminals understand psychology.

They create urgency, fear, authority and confusion.

They know that when people are under pressure, they may make decisions they would normally question.

That is why an effective fraud-prevention system cannot simply tell customers:

“Be careful.”

It must also give them a reliable mechanism to stop, verify and respond quickly.

What Should Banks and Organizations Do?

The question isn’t simply whether a suspicious communication is a scam.

The bigger question is:

How quickly can an organization help a customer determine that?

Financial institutions should consider developing dedicated, rapid-response fraud verification channels where customers can quickly report suspicious communications and receive clear guidance.

That could include:

1. Rapid Verification

Customers should have a simple way to verify whether an email, SMS, phone call or payment request genuinely came from the institution.

2. Clear Escalation

If the first customer-service representative cannot determine whether something is fraudulent, the case should immediately reach someone who can.

3. Real-Time Fraud Intelligence

Banks should continuously monitor emerging scams and share relevant intelligence with frontline customer-service teams.

4. Customer-Centered Communication

Customers should not be left wondering what to do while an investigation is taking place.

They should receive clear instructions:

Do not respond.
Do not click.
Do not transfer funds.
Do not share authentication codes.

5. Speed as a Security Control

Response time should be treated as part of fraud prevention—not simply as a customer-service metric.

Because in fraud, delay can become vulnerability.

We Need to Rethink the Advice

“Call your bank if you’re unsure” is valuable advice.

But it creates an expectation.

When customers follow that advice, they should encounter an organization capable of helping them make a decision quickly.

Otherwise, we are effectively telling people:

“If you think you’re being attacked, call us—but be prepared to wait.”

That is not enough in an environment where criminals are operating in real time.

Fraudsters Don’t Wait for Business Hours

The modern criminal doesn’t have to wait for a branch to open.

They don’t have to wait for a department to respond.

They don’t have to wait for an investigation.

They can operate 24/7, from anywhere in the world, using automation and social engineering to target thousands of people simultaneously.

Our fraud-response mechanisms need to recognize this reality.

If criminals can operate in real time, our defenses must be capable of responding in real time too.

The Bigger Lesson

This incident may eventually turn out to be a false alarm.

Perhaps the communication was legitimate.

Perhaps it was fraudulent.

But the uncertainty itself exposes an important weakness.

A customer did the right thing.

They recognized something suspicious.

They didn’t act impulsively.

They contacted the bank through an official channel.

And yet, after doing everything we tell customers to do, they were still waiting for an answer.

That should make us think.

Fraud prevention isn’t only about educating people to recognize criminals.

It is also about building systems that can respond when people recognize them.

Because the goal shouldn’t be simply to tell customers what to do.

The goal should be to make sure that when they do the right thing, the system is ready to respond.

Final Thought

Fraud response needs to move at the speed of fraud.

Because while organizations are investigating, criminals are acting.

While customers are waiting, scammers are calling.

And while systems are processing, money can be moving.

In the fight against fraud, speed isn’t just convenience.

Speed is protection.

— Shamir Rajadurai, PhD.
International Speaker & Consultant | Criminologist | CPTED & Crime Prevention Specialist | Cyber Crime