Challenge
Fraud detection is critical for any financial institution, and this global credit card provider was no exception. However, their fraud detection process was taking an average of 3.5 hours, leaving customers vulnerable to financial losses and frustration.
For two years, the company worked with multiple vendors to address the issue, but no solution yielded significant improvement. With millions of transactions processed daily, the organization urgently needed a partner capable of not only diagnosing the bottlenecks but also delivering rapid, scalable results.
The client sought a solution that could achieve near-instantaneous fraud alerts without compromising the system’s integrity or usability. They turned to Technology Partners to optimize their systems and improve the customer experience.
Solution
Technology Partners deployed a query-tuning expert to assess and resolve the system’s performance issues. The approach focused on enhancing database efficiency while providing the client’s team with sustainable tools for long-term improvements.
Key actions included:
- Query Optimization: Applied advanced techniques such as indexing, SQL hints, histograms, stored outlines, and materialized views to improve query efficiency and response times.
- Mentorship Program: Trained the client’s team of Oracle DBAs on how to identify and address future performance issues, ensuring self-sufficiency.
- Sustainable Framework: Established a set of tools and strategies that could be applied across other systems for consistent performance gains.
This tailored approach ensured the client could maintain peak system performance and quickly respond to evolving challenges.
Results
The results were immediate and transformative. Fraud detection times dropped from 3.5 hours to just 20 seconds after less than a day of tuning. This dramatic reduction allowed customers to react to fraudulent activity almost instantly, improving trust and satisfaction.
The new tools and strategies implemented by Technology Partners not only resolved the immediate issue but also provided a framework for ongoing optimization. The client’s Oracle DBA team continues to apply these techniques, achieving similar performance improvements across other systems.
Over 600x increase in performance speeds generated big results.
This project exemplifies how targeted database optimization can drive significant operational and customer experience benefits, particularly in high-stakes industries like financial services.
Key Outcomes
- 20-Second Fraud Alerts: Reduced detection times by over 600x, enhancing customer safety.
- Sustainable Optimization: Provided tools and training for ongoing performance improvements.
- Enhanced Customer Experience: Improved trust and satisfaction with faster fraud notifications.
- Scalable Framework: Established a replicable model for optimizing other systems.
