2022 was a year when Australians became more aware than ever of the risks posed by cyber events, scams and fraud. In the six months to December 2022, Commonwealth Bank made a number of moves to help keep customers safe.

These included launching the CommBank Safe hub to increase awareness on scams and fraud; contacting 9 million customers via the CommBank app, NetBank and email about uplifting their banking security; introducing AI technology in July to detect suspicious and unusual behaviour on digital banking platforms; and launching CallerCheck, which uses the CommBank app to verify phone calls from the bank are genuine, in November.

(NameCheck, another new security feature which prompts customers if the account details on a new payment don’t look right, was announced in February 2023.)

November also marked the premiere of the podcast Anatomy of a Scam, an eight-part exploration of the most common types of scams. In the words of its host, journalist Deborah Knight, “education is key” to stopping scammers.

Meanwhile, in the first half of the 2023 financial year more than 100,000 credit file locks were placed via Credit Savvy, a free service backed by CBA’s x15ventures. Its new SavvyShield feature monitors a user’s credit report and allows them to place a ban to stop fraudsters opening up credit under their name.

Best in digital

Commonwealth Bank’s strategy is to deliver global best digital experiences and technology, work that continued in the six months to December 2022.

As of December the CommBank app has 7.3 million active customers, up from 6.6 million at the end of 2021, and 6.3 million the year prior. The average active customer logs in 38.6 times per month, while in December the app earned a consumer mobile net promoter score of +28.5 — well ahead of its major bank peers.

In September 2022 CommBank began piloting Fuel finder in the CommBank app, a new feature to help NSW customers manage a key everyday expense as the cost of living continues to rise. From December, all app users were able to add a customised profile photo — another feature to provide a more personalised experience in the app.

The total number of digitally active CommBank customers (those who have logged into a core digital banking asset such a NetBank or the CommBank app at least once) increased to 8.3 million by December 2022, up from 7.7 million a year prior, while digital transactions now account for 73 percent of total transactions by value.

Other key digital milestones, as of December 2022:

  • Since it launched in late 2022, the new credit score hub in the CommBank app and Netbank has been set up by more than a quarter of a million customers, enabling them to easily view and access their personalised credit report, free of charge
  • The total amount claimed via Benefits finder since the feature was launched in September 2019 has passed $1 billion
  • In July to December 2022, 83 percent of eligible home loan customers chose digital documents and signing (up from 60 percent in the same period of 2022), while 93 percent of property transactions settled digitally

Go to CBA Newsroom for the latest news and announcements from Commonwealth Bank.