Ireland’s Government has committed to establishing a shared fraud database among financial institutions, utility companies, and payment firms, in response to nearly €100 million in scams reported in 2023.
Currently, legislation prohibits banks from sharing data with other essential utility providers. However, new measures under the Data Protection Act of 2018 aim to address this gap.
The Government also plans to push for national and EU legislation that would require online platforms to only advertise financial products from companies regulated by their respective national authorities. This proposal is currently under consideration as part of the EU’s review of the Payments Services Regulation.
Additionally, there is a commitment to explore the implementation of an SMS scam filter designed to block harmful links or content. Similar SMS filters are already operating in some EU Member States, and banks have identified this as a priority for new legislation.
Susan Russell, CEO of Retail Ireland at Bank of Ireland, stated: “Prevention really is better than cure when it comes to fraud, as Irish consumers and businesses are more exposed compared to their counterparts in other English-speaking countries. Bank of Ireland has proposed several policy changes to prevent fraudsters from targeting Irish consumers in the first place. We welcome the inclusion of these commitments in the Programme for Government and will continue to advocate for their swift implementation by the new Government.”