KUALA LUMPUR (July 26): The Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM) said today that a viral video which featured a portable point-of-sale (POS) terminal being used to perform an unauthorised transaction via a contactless payment card located in a cardholder’s pocket, did not occur in Malaysia.   

In a statement, ABM said “such fraudulent activity is unlikely to happen due to the stringent merchant onboarding process undertaken by banks and/or financial institutions.” 

“Only registered businesses (approved merchants) that have undergone a customer due diligence process by the banks or financial institutions are eligible to apply for a POS terminal facility. 

“All transactions made at a POS terminal must be processed by a bank and/or financial institution and all these transactions are traceable,” ABM said. 

The association advised cardholders to keep their payment cards secure at all times, and report any loss or unauthorised usage of the card to their bank or financial institutions. 

ABM also explained that there is a limit per transaction for contactless payments, which is set by the banks and/or financial institutions. “Any transaction above the limit must be authorised using a PIN, which is only known to the cardholder,” ABM said. 

As such, cardholders who wish to lower the transaction limit or disable the contactless functionality, are advised to contact their respective banks and/or financial institutions, the statement added.