As a method to combat financial crimes, banks are developing applications based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), which can guarantee a high level of security, but at the same time take away our right to privacy.
Digital systems struggle every day to maintain and guarantee the security of the data and information they manage, and the current banking system is no exception to this reality. In an increasingly automated and digitalized world, where financial and commercial operations are carried out in greater numbers through online platforms, banks are beginning to develop applications based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) y Machine Learning to combat acts of corruption and financial crimes.
The application of AI in current financial and banking systems can help in the development of innovative and effective tools to prevent corruption and other crimes. In this regard, banks have already invested more than 217 one billion dollars in the development of these tools, which have the capacity to analyze a large number of transactions and at the same time identify and track those that contain fraudulent elements, such as a login from an uncommon or unknown region for a client or user who wants to make a large transfer or bank transaction.
Likewise, through these tools, banks seek to acquire effective instruments that contribute to the reduction of financial crimes, which are quite common within these entities, although at a considerable cost: the loss of the right to privacy of users.
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Prevention Strategies for Financial Crimes, an invasion of the right to privacy
According to the perspective of the book of “Financial Crime Prevention Strategies” written by the international organizationNICE Activize together with PYMNTSBanks have already applied certain tools developed on Artificial Intelligence with great effectiveness, to the point of claiming a 50% reduction in the incidence of financial crimes. However, the publication also points out that, due to the potential qualities that AI has, the privacy of users is seriously affected.
Through these systems and tools, banks and financial institutions will be able to know exactly what each user is doing, which is really an invasion of each person's privacy. The great analytical capacity of AI processes and the machine learning capacity of this technology can lead it to delve deeply into our finances and into all aspects of our lives, into what we do, how we do it, where we do it and much more. In addition, by creating patterns and profiles of our actions and keeping a detailed record of everything we do or don't do with our money, Artificial Intelligence can lead us to certain limitations and prohibitions.
“If the person wants to make a transaction outside of his or her “pattern and profile,” the bank could block the transaction considering it to be fraud when in reality it could be the user’s own transaction.”
While this technology offers great benefits and advantages, such as reducing human errors within systems, optimizing efficiency and effectiveness in thousands of processes, and integrating innovative tools in virtually all industries, AI behavior can be a negative factor against user privacy and freedom, especially in banking and financial systems.
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