Risk management in online and offline transactions

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10037517-B1
Application number	US-201414578765-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Dec 22, 2014
Priority date	Dec 22, 2014
Publication date	Jul 31, 2018
Grant date	Jul 31, 2018

Abstract

Techniques and arrangements for managing risk of fraudulent transactions made by a point-of-sale (POS) device operating in an online and an offline mode. In some instances, a payment service may maintain a merchant profile with a list of merchant specific criteria. The payment service may encrypt and send the merchant specific criteria to the POS device associated with the merchant. The encrypted data may include a list of payment instruments used in previous successful transactions, customer transaction histories, and other customer information. The POS device may determine, upon receiving a payment instrument identifier in a transaction, whether the payment instrument has been used in a previous successful transaction. If the POS device determines the payment instrument has been used, it may process the transaction. If not, the POS device may warn the merchant that the transaction is a high-risk transaction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A point-of-sale (POS) device comprising:
a display;
a reader to receive a payment instrument of a customer of a merchant;
one or more processors; and
one or more computer-readable media storing instructions executable by the one or more processors, wherein the instructions program the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:
conducting, via the POS device and using the payment instrument, a previous transaction between the customer and the merchant, wherein the payment instrument is associated with an identifier;
sending, to a payment service, the identifier and data indicating that the payment instrument associated with the identifier was used to conduct the previous transaction with the merchant;
receiving, from the payment service while the POS device operates in an online mode, at least one bloom filter generated based at least in part on the identifier and the data, the at least one bloom filter defining:
a plurality of hash functions; and
an array comprising multiple positions, the array representing the identifier of the payment instrument used to conduct the previous transaction between the customer and the merchant;

storing the at least one bloom filter;
receiving, from the reader while the POS device operates in an offline mode, the identifier of the payment instrument for satisfying a cost of a current transaction between the merchant and the customer;
determining that the POS device is operating in the offline mode;
mapping, using the plurality of hash functions and based at least in part on determining that the POS device is operating in the offline mode, the identifier of the payment instrument to the array;
determining that the identifier of the payment instrument matches respective positions in the array;
based at least in part on determining that the identifier of the payment instrument matches the respective positions in the array:
presenting, on the display, an indication that the customer has previously transacted with the merchant; and
storing the identifier of the payment instrument and an indication of the cost of the current transaction;

switching from operating in the offline mode to operating in the online mode; and
sending, based at least in part on switching from operating in the offline mode to operating in the online mode, the identifier of the payment instrument and the indication of the cost of the current transaction to the payment service for authorizing the payment instrument for the cost of the current transaction.

2. The POS device as claim 1 recites, the acts further comprising presenting on the display, based at least in part on determining that the identifier of the payment instrument matches the respective positions in the array, information associated with the customer.

3. The POS device as claim 1 recites, wherein the indication comprises a first indication, and the acts further comprising presenting on the display, based at least in part on determining that the identifier of the payment instrument matches the respective positions in the array, a second indication that the payment instrument of the customer has previously been declined.

4. The POS device as claim 1 recites, wherein the customer comprises a first customer, and the acts further comprising:
receiving, while the POS device operates in the offline mode, a second identifier of a second payment instrument of a second customer for satisfying a second cost of a second transaction between the merchant and the second customer;
mapping, using the plurality of hash functions, the second identifier of the second payment instrument of the second customer to the array;
determining that the second identifier of the second payment instrument of the second customer does not match respective positions in the array; and
providing a selectable option to proceed with the second transaction.

5. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to perform acts comprising:
receiving, from a payment service, while a merchant device is operating in an online mode, at least one bloom filter, the at least one bloom filter defining:
a plurality of hash functions;
an array comprising multiple positions and representing at least one identifier of at least one payment instrument that a respective customer previously used to conduct a transaction with a merchant; and
a false positive tolerance associated with a payment criterion;

storing the at least one bloom filter;
receiving, while the merchant device is operating in an offline mode, an identifier of a payment instrument of a customer for satisfying a cost of a current transaction between the merchant and the customer;
determining that the merchant device is operating in the offline mode;
mapping, using the plurality of hash functions and based at least in part on determining that the merchant device is operating in the offline mode, the identifier of the payment instrument to the array;
determining that the identifier of the payment instrument matches respective positions in the array, the determining indicating that the identifier of the payment instrument satisfies the false positive tolerance;
processing, based at least in part on the identifier of the payment instrument satisfying the false positive tolerance, the current transaction; and
storing the identifier of the payment instrument.

6. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as claim 5 recites, the acts further comprising:
switching from operating in the offline mode to operating in the online mode,
and wherein processing the current transaction comprises sending the identifier of the payment instrument and an indication of the cost of the current transaction to the payment service for authorizing the payment instrument for the cost of the current transaction.

7. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as claim 5 recites, the acts further comprising causing presentation of information associated with the customer, wherein the information associated with the customer has been previously selected to be displayed by the merchant.

8. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as claim 5 recites, the acts further comprising causing presentation of an indication that the payment instrument has previously been declined.

9. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as claim 5 recites, the acts further comprising:
receiving, while the merchant device is operating in the online mode, an additional identifier of an additional payment instrument of an additional customer for satisfying a cost of an additional transaction between the merchant and the additional customer; and
sending, to the payment service for authorizing the additional payment instrument for the cost of the additional transaction, the additional identifier of the additional payment instrument and the indication of the cost of the additional transaction.

10. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media as claim 5 recites, the acts further comprising:
receiving, while the merchant device is operating in the offline mode, an additional identifier of an additional payment instrument of an additional customer for satisfying a cost of an additional transaction between the merchant and the additional customer;
mapping, using the plurality of hash functions, the additional identifier of the additional payment instrument of the additional customer to the array;
determining that the additional identifier of the additional payment instrument of the additional customer does not match respective positions in the array; and
providing a s

Assignees

• Square Inc

Inventors

• Chi Yun
• Ishaq Naeem
• Mccauley Nathan
• Yan Rong

Classifications

• G07G1/01

  Details for indicating · CPC title

• G06Q20/20 Primary

  Point-of-sale [POS] network systems · CPC title

• G07G1/0009

  Details of the software in the checkout register, electronic cash register [ECR] or point of sale terminal [POS] · CPC title

• G06Q20/4016

  involving fraud or risk level assessment in transaction processing · CPC title

• G07G1/0036

  Checkout procedures · CPC title