Key Points:

Jamaican banks are accelerating anti-fraud upgrades as digital card fraud becomes more sophisticated, with JMMB introducing Visa Secure and OTP authentication.

The story works best when framed around the wider banking sector shift, not just JMMB, because multiple banks are now adding card freezes, OTPs and transaction controls.

BOJ data gives the story weight: debit card fraud rose 17 per cent to $907 million even as overall fraud losses declined.

JMMB Bank (Jamaica) Limited is set to implement Visa Secure as part of its strategy to better protect its customers from digital fraud.

“As part of our commitment to keeping your online transactions secure, JMMB Bank will introduce 3D Secure effective Thursday, May 14. This enhanced security feature helps protect you from fraud when making online purchases with your JMMB Bank Visa Debit card,” JMMB said in an email to its debit card customers.

The tool offered by Visa Inc prompts cardholders to verify certain online transactions that appear unusual based on their normal spending activity. A customer will be required to submit a one-time passcode (OTP) sent to their mobile number on file to authorise the transaction to continue. If this code isn’t submitted, the transaction cannot continue, effectively halting a fraudulent transaction before it is completed.

This is an example of a 3D (Three-Domain) Secure which is an authentication protocol meant to limit losses for customers and merchants. Visa Secure (formerly Verified by Visa) is the offering provided by Visa Inc while Mastercard ID Check is the offering by Mastercard Inc.

Card numbers on a debit/credit card are a numeric sequence that follow a set of specific rules to identify the institution, the industry associated with the card and account number with the card. BIN or issuer identification number (IIN) refers to the first six digits on a debit or credit card.

While this standardisation has its benefits for banks and card processors, regular customers across various commercial banks in Jamaica have been impacted by BIN (bank identification number) attacks in the last five years as fraudsters get more sophisticated with their tactics. This attack involves the use of computers to generate thousands of combinations to guess the full card number and other details needed to carry out a card transaction.

While customers tend to get reimbursed later, the loss of funds and temporary disruption can be devastating to customers when most of their funds kept in one bank account connected to the debit card.

JMMB Bank’s introduction of Visa Secure adds on top of its Moneyline app which allows for users to lock/freeze or cancel their debit cards. National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited introduced OTP protection in March 2026 for both Visa and Mastercard transactions. That security addition is on top of the card freezing function being enabled in the mobile application in October 2024.

The Bank of Nova Scotia Jamaica Limited introduced debit card controls in November 2025 which enabled clients to lock or unlock their cards. Credit card users currently have card controls and can set transaction limits to ensure that transactions above a particular threshold aren’t processed.

JN Bank Limited is currently distributing its Visa debit card to customers and is looking to introduce the JN MyCard app to allow customers to freeze their debit cards.

First Global Bank Limited uses the CVVKEY app to provide temporary CVV numbers for online transactions and replaces the static numbers on the back of cards. The CVV number is a crucial code needed to execute transactions. This is on top of enabling customers to freeze their cards via the online Global Access platform.

Every commercial bank excluding Citibank N.A. has introduced EMV chip-enabled cards for their customers as part of their move to protect its customers from fraud with their physical cards. The Bank of Jamaica’s 2025 financial stability report revealed that debit card fraud increased 17 per cent to $907 million while credit card fraud. Total fraud declined 18 per cent to $2.41 billion in 2025 but represented a weighted average share of 6.2 per cent of institutional profits.

“The deposit-taking sector has demonstrated progressive strengthening against bank fraud, driven by adaptation, institutional learning, and iterative risk management improvements. Although fraud and cyber-related threats persisted, their capacity to disrupt banking soundness or threaten overall financial stability declined over time,” the BOJ stated.