An Inside Look at Authentication Done Right

Martin Spusta, CEO of Spark Wallet, shares how implementing advanced digital ID verification created greater opportunities for his organization.

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Fast-growing FinTech Spark Wallet offers 5% back to customers on every purchase they make via its cash and lightning wallet. That offer, however, does not extend to fraudsters and bots.

Some of the most prominent tech companies in the world, such as Twitter, PayPal and LinkedIn, are all dealing with fake accounts and problems staving off bots. There are many methods of bot fraud, but most involve a bot script that mimics real users signing up for new accounts.

Companies must erect verification defenses that can often make it more difficult for bona fide customers to sign up.

Previous methods that Spark Wallet tried for fighting fraud, including liveness checks and document scanning, added too much friction for users and did not prevent enough bots from finding their way through verification.

“When evaluating an identity verification provider, choose the one that doesn’t hinder the customer experience and company growth,” said Spark Wallet CEO Martin Spusta.

The company turned to Prove for solutions, including its Trust Score tool, which measures identity reputation in real time by analyzing signals such as phone number and device tenure, SIM wraps and behavioral anomalies. Bots usually register low Trust Scores, making it easier for companies to block them. Spark Wallet reported it is now bot-free and using cash back from would-be bots to grow the company.

“It’s 100 times easier than anything we’ve ever used before, and in the end, all the bot accounts were gone,” said Spusta. “We can still see the bots attempting to create accounts, but we also see them being blocked. Today, we’re bot-free.”