Q2's Continuous Account Takeover Protection: FAQ

As part of Q2's ongoing efforts to help banks and credit unions and the account holders against sophisticated fraud attempts, we announced two new solutions that help institutions provide continuous account takeover protection, User Activity Monitoring and Restricted Entitlements Mode.

Watch this video to learn about  Q2's approach to account takeover protection. Our FAQ then provides more information on continuous account takeover protection, the problem it is designed to address, and why a more connected approach to fraud prevention matters.

Q: What is continuous account takeover protection?

A: Continuous account takeover protection is not a single standalone product. It is a coordinated approach that brings together multiple Q2 fraud capabilities to help financial institutions detect and respond to account takeover risk across the digital banking journey.

It includes two new products, User Activity Monitoring and Restricted Entitlements Mode, in addition to existing Q2 fraud products Sentinel and Patrol. Together, these products help support continuous protection across the entire user journey.

The goal is to go beyond flagging suspicious activity at one point in time and instead help financial institutions connect what is happening across the session then respond before fraud can escalate.

Q: What problem does continuous account takeover protection solve?

A: Account takeover has become one of the most damaging fraud challenges facing financial institutions because it often serves as the front door to everything that follows.
Once fraudsters steal usernames and passwords and gain access to legitimate accounts, they can change credentials, add payees, link external accounts, and move money quickly through real-time payment rails. Because they have those valid credentials, fraudsters’ activity within a digital banking session can be extremely difficult to detect.

Meanwhile, fraud teams at banks and credit unions are already stretched thin from high alert volumes, chasing after false positives, and conducting manual reviews in multiple systems. And the rapid increase in payment speed has narrowed the window in which institutions can spot and stop fraudsters.

Banks and credit unions need a better way to identify and stop account takeover attempts, before they do real damage to their account holder and the institution.

Q: Why do traditional fraud controls struggle to stop account takeover?

A: Primarily because account takeover is a journey problem.

It does not always show up at a single moment. A suspicious event may begin before login, continue during the session, and only become visible when a high-risk action or transaction takes place. That means financial institutions are often dealing with a sequence of behaviors, not one isolated alert.

Traditional fraud controls are often built around separate checkpoints, such as login authentication or transaction monitoring. Those tools can still play an important role, but when they operate in silos, they can leave gaps between signals and workflows. That makes it harder to see the full picture while the attack is unfolding.

Q: How is Q2’s approach different from traditional fraud tools?

A: Q2’s approach is designed to connect signals across the digital banking journey rather than treat fraud as a series of disconnected moments.

Instead of focusing only on login risk or only on transaction activity, continuous account takeover protection helps financial institutions look at behavior during the session, evaluate high-risk account actions, monitor transactions, and take action when risk is detected.

It is also embedded within digital banking to give financial institutions better visibility into what is happening and helps reduce the gaps that attackers often exploit.

The benefit is a more connected view of risk, earlier opportunities to intervene, and a path from detection to interruption.

Q: How does continuous account takeover protection work across the digital banking journey?

A: The approach is built around four coordinated capabilities.

• User Activity Monitoring helps identify early account takeover signals during the digital banking session. That can include unusual behavior, interaction timing, navigation patterns, and other signals that suggest something may be wrong.
• Patrol focuses on high-risk account actions. It helps evaluate sensitive events such as changes to account details, or other actions that may signal account takeover activity.
• Sentinel monitors transactions for anomalies. It adds another layer of visibility when money movement or payment behavior looks unusual.
• Restricted Entitlements Mode supports response and containment. When suspicious activity is detected, it can help financial institutions apply controls such as restricting access, adjusting permissions, or limiting certain actions while the situation is reviewed.

Taken together, these capabilities form a more continuous system for detecting, interrupting, and containing account takeover activity across the user journey.

Q: What role does AI play in this approach?

A: AI plays a critical role by helping connect the dots between various signals in real-time so financial institutions can make more informed decisions. When those signals are pulled together and analyzed, they can help identify suspicious activity amongst what might otherwise look like an isolated or low-priority alert.

AI also powers two important capabilities within User Activity Monitoring. A fraud pattern discovery agent reviews confirmed fraud cases to identify repeatable attack patterns and help propose new detectors that can be deployed more quickly as threats evolve. A case agent generates clear, natural-language explanations of why a session was flagged, along with the most relevant timeline of events, so fraud analysts can investigate and respond faster.

It’s about making more effective fraud decisions by turning large volumes of in-session activity into actionable fraud intelligence. Rather than simply generating more alerts, AI helps connect the dots across user behavior, device signals, session activity, and transaction context so financial institutions can better understand when behavior aligns to a real fraud pattern.

That matters because fraud teams don’t benefit from just receiving more alerts. They need better context. They need a clearer understanding of whether a digital interaction makes sense based on what is known about the user, the device, the session, and the transaction.

In that way, AI helps support more contextual decision making and faster response across the digital banking journey.

Q: What happens when suspicious activity is detected?

A: In the past, when suspicious activity was detected many banks and credit unions faced a binary decision: Either let the activity continue or shut out the account holder completely.

With Restricted Entitlements Mode, financial institutions can apply varying levels of friction, restrict access, adjust permissions, or limit certain actions. The right response depends on the situation and on how the institution wants to manage risk.

Sometimes what the institution needs is just more time to determine whether something suspicious truly is fraud. Restricted Entitlements mode gives them that freedom, without having to choose between angering an account holder or incurring a loss.

Q: Why should banks and credit unions care about this now?

A: The pressure on fraud teams is growing.

Digital adoption continues to rise. Faster payment experiences have raised the stakes. At the same time, many fraud teams are dealing with alert fatigue, disconnected tools, and limited time to investigate what matters most.

Financial institutions need earlier detection, faster containment, and a more connected way to evaluate risk across the digital banking experience.

Q2’s continuous account takeover protection products meet those needs.

Click here to learn more, or if you’d like to talk directly with us, reach out and let us know.