Chicago – October 19, 2024
The United States Treasury Department is turning more to artificial intelligence (AI)to fight fraud, using the technology to thwart $4bn in improper payments in the last year.
The agency released the estimate in a press release Thursday announcing the success of its “technology and data-driven approach”.
In fiscal year 2024, which ran from October 2023 to September 2024, the Treasury used machine-learning AI to halt $1bn in cheque fraud, it said.
At the same time, its AI processes helped weed out $3bn in other improper payments, including by pinpointing at-risk transactions and improving screening, it added.
The $4bn total annual fraud prevention was six times higher than that captured in the previous year, according to the agency.
Treasury official Renata Miskell told CNN that the use of AI technology has been “transformative” for the agency, which still requires a human to make the last call on labelling fraud.
“Fraudsters are really good at hiding. They’re trying to secretly game the system,” Miskell said. “AI and leveraging data helps us find those hidden patterns and anomalies and work to prevent them.”
Each year, the US Treasury, the US’s finance department, distributes some 1.4bn payments, totalling over $6.9 trillion, according to the agency.
In its statement on fraud prevention, the agency said it “takes seriously our responsibility to serve as effective stewards of taxpayer money”.
