Street Mode makes it harder for criminals to get their hands on funds
Revolut has launched a new security feature (Image: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Revolut has announced the launch of Street Mode in Ireland, a new security feature designed to help protect customers from theft in instances of phone snatching.
According to the fintech app, Street Mode provides a customisable layer of location-aware protection to funds when customers are on the go, and is designed to tackle evolving fraud tactics, including instances where phone snatchers force their victims to enable transfers through phone identity verification.
As the fraud landscape continues to evolve, Ireland remains one of many countries across Europe to see a rise in phone snatching. These incidents put people’s funds at risk as criminals aim to make transfers while the phone remains unlocked, in some cases forcing victims to complete required selfie checks before fleeing the scene, a phenomenon known as ‘transfer mugging’.
Street Mode is launching ahead of the busy shopping and holiday season, when crowded shopping streets or late night festivities provide additional opportunities to fraudsters.
Once enabled, it empowers customers to define their own ‘Trusted Locations’, outside of which Street Mode will kick in and subject outgoing transfers, above a certain limit, defined by the customer, to additional identification checks and a one-hour delay.
Street mode won’t impact the customer’s ability to shop and spend as normal when they are out. These protections create a critical window of time where fraudulent activity can be stopped by preventing customer funds from being transferred under duress.
Rami Kalai, Product Owner at Revolut, said: “It’s vital that we stay on top of emerging threats to customer funds and ‘transfer mugging’ is one that is rising across many cities and countries.
“Street Mode is a smart, location-aware shield that adapts to locations where customers need an extra level of protection and provides confidence on the go. Street Mode puts Revolut customers in control with extra layers of protection for their funds when they need it most.”
To enable Street Mode, Revolut customers should:
- Turn on Wealth Protection in the Security section of their profile
- Set a transfer limit
- Toggle on Street Mode
- Set trusted locations — these can be added or removed at any time
Once enabled:
- Inside trusted locations: Customers can make transfers over a set limit with a phone identity check, which is processed immediately.
- Outside trusted locations: In addition to the initial phone identity check, transfers will be delayed by an hour and subject to an additional selfie check after this one-hour window.
The launch of Street Mode is an expansion of Revolut’s Wealth Protection feature which launched last year, providing extra biometric identification to protect customers’ hard-earned savings from pickpockets and phone snatchers.
Wealth Protection is one of a suite of sophisticated tools designed to safeguard Revolut customer funds. It has been enabled by over one million Revolut customers across Europe since launch.
In 2024 alone, Revolut prevented over €700 million in potential fraud against its customers globally by implementing real-time AI fraud detection systems, transaction limits, in-app warnings and delayed payments for suspicious transactions, biometric authentication requirements, and educational resources to help consumers remain informed about the risks.
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