PLEA TO TECH GURUS - PLEASE HELP! - End user orders erronously keep getting flagged up as fraudulent

Shopify Discussion
1

(I’m an end user, not a shop)

Having the same issue over and over again… for over two years now! Please someone help!

Orders keep getting flagged up as fraudulent. Trying to figure out why and how to ‘clear my name’.

Multiple merchants. (only common denominator is Shopify)

Email address is working.

No problem with shipping (=billing) address. Residential address, been here for over a decade (nothing special).

No problem with the bank. Absolutely no flags on my account (never so much as a late payment. ever. all definitely clear.)

No problem with the credit card itself. Used it for a long time, no issues at all. Never been blocked, marked lost or stolen… nothing.

Never had the slightest problem, been shopping online for years and years… Using the same details (name, address, same card) works fine and never gets flagged outside of Shopify. It IS Shopify’s system only.

What is it that could be getting orders flagged up as fraudulent?! How can I get my name cleared within the system?!

Shopify support have not been able to help, nor can they even tell me what the problem is exactly. They only advised to contact merchants after every.single.order (!) and ask them to process the order manually… which kind of defies the purpose of Shopify really. Avoiding Shopify isn’t an option, as so many merchants use it and there’s no alternative to place an order. So I need to find a solution.

Whom can I speak to? Who can help to look at the back end of my profile? Please!

2

Hi @elk4biz ,

As I’ve understood it, whenever you try to make orders from stores that you believe are using the Shopify platform, you often/always get flagged as a potentially fraudulent customer. Is that correct?

Shopify’s fraud analysis uses an algorithm that relies on certain indicators to advise the store owner. These indicators may include:

  • Whether the credit card used for the order passes AVS checks
  • Whether the customer provided the correct CVV code
  • Details about the IP address used to place the order
  • Whether the customer tried to use more than one credit card

We cannot account for all the indicators used, but ultimately all the system really does is cross-reference the information related to the card with the card user and their location, and then provide those details to the store owner as a fraud recommendation.

While we can give you a general outline of how our fraud analysis works, we cannot be sure why your cards specifically would be flagged. I would advise that you consult with your credit card provider or bank again, to ask if there is anything that they are aware of that might flag your details with standard fraud analysis algorithms. If they are unable to shed some light on the issue, perhaps you might want to obtain a new card?

I hope this helps!