Social media giant Meta has announced an expansion of its fraud prevention programme in partnership with UK banks, enabling direct intelligence sharing to protect users against online scams.

The company's Fraud Intelligence Reciprocal Exchange (FIRE) programme will initially work with NatWest and Metro Bank, with more financial institutions expected to join in the coming months. The partnership has already demonstrated success, with approximately 20,000 fraudulent accounts removed following the identification of a concert ticket scam targeting people in the UK and US.

Nathaniel Gleicher, global head of counter-fraud at Meta, said: "This work has already seen us take action against thousands of accounts run by scammers, indicating the importance of banks and platforms working together to tackle this societal issue. We will only beat these criminals if we work together and share relevant information related to scams."

The collaboration has received strong support from law enforcement and banking leaders. David Lindberg, chief executive officer of retail banking at NatWest, emphasised the importance of early intervention: "Spotting and stopping fraudsters before they are able to target customers is the best way to address this growing problem. Partnering with Meta is an important step in tackling the epidemic of fraud."

Metro Bank's chief operating officer, Faisal Hussain, highlighted the need for industry-wide cooperation: "Scams are an industry-wide problem which require industry-wide solutions. We've been inspired by our work with Meta as an example of how we can all work together to protect consumers from faceless online fraudsters."

The initiative has also received backing from law enforcement. Adrian Searle, director of the National Economic Crime Centre, welcomed the expansion, noting it demonstrates "a willingness to help tackle the scourge of online fraud, by bringing together data from across the bank and technology sectors."

The programme builds on Meta's commitments under the Online Fraud Charter established in 2023, where leading tech companies agreed to help reduce fraud and financial exploitation on their platforms. The company has created an Anti-Scam hub where users can learn about the latest scams and get tips on how to avoid them.

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