Granted Patent B1

US 12,450,613 · App. 18/097,413 · Granted Oct 21, 2025

Inventors: Jennifer A. Fisher (St. Louis, MO); Brian M. Pearce (Pleasanton, CA); Steven E. Puffer (Champlin, MN)

Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

G06Q20/409G06Q20/3278G06Q20/357G06Q20/382G06Q20/4015G06Q20/425

Abstract

Claims (82)

1. A computing system, comprising:

a memory storing instructions and a processing unit executing the instructions stored in the memory, causing the processing unit to perform operations comprising:

receiving an indication for an attempted electronic transaction involving a merchant and a payment card of a user;

identifying, based on electronic transaction histories of a group of users indicating that the group of users infrequently transact with the merchant, that the attempted electronic transaction involving the merchant is an out-of-pattern transaction;

generating a proposed card control rule for the user responsive to identifying that the attempted electronic transaction involving the merchant is an out-of-pattern transaction;

transmitting the proposed card control rule to a card control dashboard;

activating, in response to receiving a user selection from the card control dashboard, the proposed card control rule, wherein activating the proposed card control rule restricts subsequent electronic transactions that violate the activated card control rule;

activating, in response to receiving a second user selection from the card control dashboard, a geo-enable feature associated with the activated card control rule;

tracking, based on the activated geo-enable feature, a location of a user device associated with the user, the processing unit enforcing the activated card control rule based at least partially on the tracked location of the user device; and

enforcing the activated card control rule for the subsequent electronic transactions by:

analyzing a first electronic transaction that involves the payment card;

receiving, from a global positioning system of the user device in accordance with the activated geo-enable feature, a set of global positioning coordinates that indicate a location of the user device associated with the first electronic transaction involving the payment card;

determining, by comparing the set of global positioning coordinates with global positioning coordinates associated with one or more merchants including the merchant, that the first electronic transaction involves the merchant and violates the activated control rule; and

denying the first electronic transaction based on the violation of the activated card control rule.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, wherein the activated card control rule is one of a plurality of activated card control rules for the subsequent electronic transactions, the operations further comprising:

receiving, prior to enforcing a second activated card control rule of the plurality of activated card control rules for the subsequent electronic transactions, a third user selection from the card control dashboard to activate a second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule; and

continuously receiving, from the global positioning system responsive to the activation of the second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule, global position coordinates that indicate a current location of the user device to enforce the second activated card control rule.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, the operations further comprising:

ceasing, in response to receiving a third user selection from the card control dashboard, enforcement of the activated card control rule.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user selection is a first selection, the operations further comprising:

receiving, prior to enforcing the activated card control rule, a third user selection from the card control dashboard to activate an alert feature corresponding to geo-enable feature and the activated card control rule; and

transmitting, to the user based on a second set of global positioning coordinates that indicate a second location of the user device, an alert indicating a second electronic transaction at the second location involving a merchant associated with the second transaction would violate the activated card control rule, wherein the alert is transmitted prior to the second electronic transaction.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, the operations further comprising:

receiving a third user selection from the card control dashboard, to activate an alert feature that transmits an alert regarding subsequent restricted electronic transactions.

6. The system of claim 5 , the operations further comprising:

receiving, following transmission of the alert to the user device regarding the first electronic transaction, a fourth user selection from the card control dashboard, to modify the activated card control rule into a modified card control rule.

7. The system of claim 6 , the operations further comprising:

using, based on the fourth user selection, the modified card control rule for the first electronic transaction; and

using the activated card control rule to restrict a second restricted electronic transaction.

8. The system of claim 6 , the operations further comprising:

using, based on the fourth user selection, the modified card control rule for the restricted first electronic transaction and for a predetermined number of subsequent transactions.

9. The system of claim 5 , the operations further comprising:

disabling, following transmission of the alert to the user device and based on a fifth user selection from the card control dashboard, the activated card control rule.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the computing system is operated by a financial institution that maintains at least one financial account of the user of the payment card.

11. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a computing system, an indication of an attempted electronic transaction involving a merchant and a payment card of a user;

identifying, by the computing system based on electronic transaction histories of a group of users indicating that the group of users infrequently transacts with the merchant, that the attempted electronic transaction involving the merchant is an out-of-pattern transaction;

generating, by the computing system, a proposed card control rule for the user responsive to identifying that the attempted electronic transaction involving the merchant is an out-of-pattern transaction;

transmitting, by the computing system, the proposed card control rule to a card control dashboard;

activating, by the computing system, in response to receiving a user selection from the card control dashboard, the proposed card control rule, wherein activating the proposed card control rule restricts the attempted electronic transaction and restricts subsequent electronic transactions that violate the activated card control rule;

activating, by the computing system in response to receiving a second user selection from the card control dashboard, a geo-enable feature associated with the activated card control rule;

tracking, by the computing system based on the activated geo-enable feature, a location of a user device associated with the user, a processing unit of the computing system enforcing the activated card control rule based at least partially on the tracked location of the user device; and

enforcing, by the computing system, the activated card control rule for the subsequent electronic transactions by:

analyzing a first electronic transaction that involves the payment card;

receiving, from a global positioning system of the user device in accordance with the activated geo-enable feature, a set of global positioning coordinates that indicate a location of the user device associated with the first electronic transaction involving the payment card;

determining, by comparing the set of global positioning coordinates with global positioning coordinates associated with one or more merchants including the merchant, that the first electronic transaction involves the merchant and violates the activated control rule; and

denying the first electronic transaction based on the violation of the activated card control rule.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, wherein the activated card control rule is one of a plurality of activated card control rules for the subsequent electronic transactions, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the computing system prior to enforcing a second activated card control rule of the plurality of activated card control rules, a third user selection from the card control dashboard to activate a second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule;

activating, by the computing system in response to third user selection, the second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule; and

continuously obtaining, by the computing system from the global positioning system responsive to the activation of the second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule, global positioning coordinates detected using the global positioning system of the user device that indicate a current location of the user device to enforce the second activated card control rule.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the user selection is a first selection, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the computing system, a third user selection from the card control dashboard, to activate an alert feature that transmits an alert regarding subsequent restricted electronic transactions.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:

receiving, by the computing system following transmission of the alert to the user device regarding the first electronic transaction, a fourth user selection from the card control dashboard, to modify the activated card control rule into a modified card control rule.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising:

using, by the computing system based on the fourth user selection, the modified card control rule for the first electronic transaction; and

using, by the computing system, the activated card control rule to restrict a second restricted electronic transaction.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable media with computer-executable instructions embodied thereon, wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by one or more processors of a computing system, cause the computing system to perform operations, comprising:

receive an indication for an attempted electronic transaction involving a merchant and a payment card of a user;

identify, based on electronic transaction histories of a group of users indicating that the group of users infrequently transact with the merchant, that the attempted electronic transaction involving the merchant is an out-of-pattern transaction;

generate a proposed card control rule for the user responsive to identifying that the attempted electronic transaction is an out-of-pattern transaction;

transmit the proposed card control rule to a card control dashboard;

activate, in response to receiving a user selection from the card control dashboard, the proposed card control rule, wherein activation of the proposed card control rule restricts subsequent transactions that violate the activated card control rule;

activate, in response to receiving a second user selection from the card control dashboard, a geo-enable feature associated with the activated card control rule;

tracking, based on the activated geo-enable feature, a location of a user device associated with the user, the one or more processors of the computing system enforcing the activated card control rule based at least partially on the tracked location of the user device; and

enforce the activated card control rule for the subsequent electronic transactions by:

analyzing a first electronic transaction that involves the payment card;

receiving, from a global positioning system of the user device in accordance with the activated geo-enable feature, a set of global positioning coordinates that indicate a location of the user device associated with the first electronic transaction involving the payment card;

determining, by comparing the set of global positioning coordinates with global positioning coordinates associated with one or more merchants including the merchant, that the first electronic transaction involves the merchant and violates the activated control rule; and

denying the first electronic transaction based on the violation of the activated card control rule.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, wherein the activated card control rule is one of a plurality of activated card control rules for the subsequent electronic transactions, the operations further comprising:

receive, prior to enforcing a second activated card control rule of the plurality of activated card control rules, a third user selection from the card control dashboard to activate a second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule;

activate, in response to the third user selection, the second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule; and

continuously obtain, from the global positioning system responsive to the activation of the second geo-enable feature corresponding to the second activated card control rule, global positioning coordinates detected using the global positioning system of the user device that indicate a current location of the user device to enforce the second activated card control rule.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 16 , wherein the user selection is a first user selection, the operations further comprising:

receive a third user selection from the card control dashboard, to activate an alert feature that transmits an alert regarding subsequent restricted electronic transactions.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 18 , the operations further comprising:

receive, by the computing system following transmission of the alert to the user device regarding the first electronic transaction, a fourth user selection from the card control dashboard, to modify the activated card control rule into a modified card control rule.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 19 , the operations further comprising:

use, based on the fourth user selection, the modified card control rule for the first electronic transaction; and

use the activated card control rule to restrict a second restricted electronic transaction.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (1)

References Cited (400)