UK Customers Face Challenges Post-SCA Regulations

Wednesday, September 21st, 2022

According to a recent analysis from antifraud tech company Signifyd, some of the concerns merchants in the United Kingdom had regarding the enforcement of Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) regulations have come true.

Customers Admit Facing Challenges after SCA

After a lengthy wait, SCA rules requiring security walls like biometrics and two-factor authentication went into effect this spring. Months into this law, survey respondents in the United Kingdom show considerable confusion and irritation with the new verification requirements during online purchases.

According to the Signifyd research, a third of the respondents claimed they could not complete a purchase due to the new laws, and over two-thirds admitted they would quit a shop and go to a competitor if they had a negative online shopping experience.

Even with many customers still confused, over three-quarters of those polled either strongly or somehow concurred that additional protection was necessary. Still, this did not stop them from switching from one retailer to another if the whole experience did not fulfill their expectations.

What Does That Mean for Retailers and Banks

“It’s obvious that UK shoppers and customers across Europe want their accounts safe from fraud,” said Ed Whitehead, Signifyd’s MD in the EMEA zone. “It is even clearer that they will not tolerate irritating checkout experiences.” 

This sends a strong message to businesses and their banks: They must implement solutions and technologies that ensure transaction security while avoiding needless extra friction in the customer journey.”