New tokenization technology, MDES for Merchants (M4M) designed to protect security of consumers and merchants as shopping goes increasingly digital
By ;Shaima Hassan - Mohamed Shawky
As e-commerce continues to accelerate owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mastercard is leading the way in fostering cybersecurity and combatting fraud in the Middle East and North Africa.
With online shopping playing an integral role in the region’s economic recovery, ensuring transaction approval rates remain robust while countering fraud attempts has taken a completely new focus. Mastercard’s technology plays an integral role in reducing online fraud, protecting retailers from data breaches while ensuring that consumers still enjoy a convenient and hassle-free payment experience. The solution will also enable regional governments to accept secure digital payments for utility and government related services, thereby accelerating the shift to digitized government transactions.
As part of Mastercard’s commitment to support the financial data and security of consumers and merchants alike, it recently introduced MDES for Merchants (M4M) offering across the region. The new service uses Tokenization technology to speed up and simplify the purchase process online and in-app, as well as for subscription-based and recurring payments like streaming music, video services and utility bills. The new tokenization technology is also designed to protect security of consumers and merchants as shopping goes increasingly digital.
Magdy Hassan, Country Manager, Egypt & Pakistan, Mastercard said: “As online shopping gains a stronger foothold in the region, it is integral that businesses ensure the trust of consumers and protect their financial data. At Mastercard, we continue to work with merchants across MENA to introduce new solutions that ensures frictionless shopping experience with no compromise on security by enabling technologies like tokenization and leveraging our payment gateway capabilities with MPGS to bring them into market. E-commerce continues to be a driving force in economic recovery, and we are working closely with our partners to foster innovation and trust in this sector.”
Currently, Mastercard has partnered with Checkout.com, a leading global payment service provider and FOO, a technology company focusing on fintech solutions, to roll out this technology in the region.
“Checkout.com has been working with Mastercard to introduce innovative features and products that enable our merchants to seamlessly accept payments and unlock more value from every transaction", said Sebastian Reis, EVP Global e-commerce at Checkout.com. "We've seen an acceleration in the shift from offline to online commerce in MENA driven by the pandemic. As such, the ecosystem requires constant innovation such as tokenization, to ensure that consumers and merchants are protected in an increasingly digital world."
Ghady Rayess, Managing Partner, FOO said: "During the pandemic period, we have noticed an exponential growth in demand for online payments. Striving to always deliver the best solution for our customers, M4M provided the perfect fit when it came to security and user experience. Together with Mastercard, we are looking forward to rolling out M4M to all our clients in the region and keep pushing towards a better payment ecosystem."
Tokenization encrypts consumer data by replacing card numbers with digital tokens. Every time a transaction is made online or with a mobile wallet, a unique token is created to make the payment and ensures that a consumer’s 16-digit card number is not stored anywhere. This prevents improper usage at any other location and provides additional security and peace of mind for consumers and merchants alike, resulting in higher approval rates while minimizing online fraud.
