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What’s SCA and why is it relevant for business travel?

The primary goal: to reduce payment fraud in online transactions.
Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) is a general legal requirement in the European Economic Area and the UK that promotes consumer protection and makes online payments more secure. Why should you be interested? Because the increasing importance of card payments over the internet also brings with it an increased potential for fraudsters. According to European Central Bank data, the largest contributor to the total value of credit card fraud in 2018 was so-called Card Not Present* (CNP) fraud, at 79% - amounting to EUR 1.43 billion!

*For example mail order, telephone order, basic and secure electronic commerce, mobile.

What does SCA mean for the field?
In order to additionally secure online card payments, a so-called 2-factor authentication was prescribed. This means that in order to make a payment, it is not sufficient to simply enter credit card data including a PIN. Instead, an additional, personal form of authentication is required (e.g., a fingerprint or code sent to one's smartphone). You‘ve probably experienced SCA in your own personal credit card transactions. Think about when you’ve needed to add a special code or add a password of some kind before you could complete the transaction.

More information and recommendations around SCA

What does it mean for companies and their travelers when, for example, a travel arranger books on behalf of a traveler?

We have published two comprehensive blog articles on the topic for you. There you can read important information and recommendations around SCA and what it means for the corporate travel sector and prepare yourself with peace of mind:

Preparing for customer authentication (SCA) in business travel

Our first post outlines how SCA works, why it makes sense, and the first step you should take to get ready for SCA.

Everything you need to know about strong customer authentication

The article explains, among other things, under which circumstances SCA applies, where exceptions exist, and how you should proceed with the topic.


 

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