We've Partnered With NCFTA to Further Reduce Fraud in the Online Gift Card Space

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA APRIL 26, 2017

Gift Card Granny, the largest and most trusted consumer meta website for buying and selling discounted gift cards, today announced its initiative with the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance. The National Cyber-Forensics & Training Alliance is one of the most recognized and respected cybercrime research and prevention organizations in the world. The joint effort will further increase consumer safety through actively reducing the potential for fraud and cyber theft.

Online fraud, particularly using stolen or compromised credit, debit and gift cards, is a growing concern for retailers and law enforcement alike. Gift Card Granny and the NCFTA have joined forces to preemptively prevent and reduce fraud in the $100 billion gift card industry. Actionable data indicating high risk attributes will be available to merchants, banks, financial institutions, and online gift card sellers to mitigate losses and deter bad actors.

Millions of consumers are now buying unwanted and discounted gift cards to join in on the savings. As the leader in the discount gift card marketplace, Gift Card Granny is taking an additional step forward by teaming up with the NCFTA to prevent and track criminal behavior. This joint effort seeks to protect consumers and improve business profitability for partners and retailers by reducing losses due to fraud and theft.

“We are very pleased to work with Gift Card Granny in this proactive effort to identify systemic risks to businesses and consumers while also helping to provide protection and clarity to those looking to save money while shopping,” said Matt LaVigna, NCTFA President & CEO. “The fact that we are joining forces to thwart cybercrime with a fellow Pittsburgh tech company makes it even more exciting."

In close collaboration with its partners, Gift Card Granny pioneered the first Consumer Protection Guidelines for gift card exchange to ensure positive customer experiences. Enhanced fraud prevention tools empower participating Granny Partners with access to 100’s of millions of data records to circumvent fraud before it occurs. The discount gift card industry generates hundreds of millions of dollars of annual revenue and is led by major Granny Partners including CardPool and CardCash. This initiative will be a major step forward in fraud prevention and consumer protection.

“In the past, the large demand and high volume of discounted gift card inventory in the marketplaces has brought heightened risks of fraud when people are looking to buy or sell a card,” said Jason Wolfe, Gift Card Granny CEO. “In the future, the alliance with NCFTA and incorporating cutting-edge information sharing into our Gift Card Granny dashboards will lead to an overall safer experience for our deal seekers and a more positive customer experience at the retailer’s site or store."

Also headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, since 2002, the NCFTA is a professional non-profit organization with a leadership team handpicked for their depth of experience in financial institutions, retail brand protection, and technology. Often working alongside law enforcement, the NCFTA leverages domestic and international assets to identify, mitigate, and ultimately disrupt cyber threats to prevent fraud. The NCFTA’s successful efforts have led to the recent creation of satellite offices in New York City and Los Angeles.

The alliance is a proactive effort to deter fraud and illegal activity in the gift card industry. The NCFTA estimates $1.8 billion dollars a year in fraud is perpetrated by cyber criminals using stolen credit and debit credentials to launder money through the purchase of legitimate goods. In the gift card industry, that equates to a fraudster using a stolen credit card to purchase gift cards from a popular retailer in hopes of flipping them to an online exchange for a quick payout. By having innovative real-time tools, comprehensive relationships, and information exchange between retailers and its partners, Gift Card Granny will help to alert online exchanges before they purchase fraudulent gift cards, identifying and reducing the risk of fraud to shoppers.

About NCFTA 
The NCFTA (http://www.ncfta.net) is devoted to identifying, mitigating, and neutralizing cybercrime threats on a global scale. One of its main roles consists of conducting real-time information sharing and analysis with Subject Matter Experts in the public, private, and academic sectors. In this way, the organization proactively identifies cyber threats to help partners take preventive measures to mitigate those threats.