Stu Bradley has made it his personal mission to help commercial and public organisations stop crime before it happens, combatting fraud and money laundering. This doesn't encompass only "regular" theft, but strikes against the most evil of evils, hitting human traffickers where it hurts.
iTWire has spoken with SAS SVP for risk, fraud, and compliance solutions Stu Bradley previously. I've always been struck by Bradley's impeccable attire. More seriously, I've been struck by the passion and committment he exudes in leveraging predictive analytics and AI technologies to aid banks and other financial institutions identify fraud before the money goes out.
SAS, the company Bradley works for, is a leader in statistical and mathematical analytics, and has nearly a half century of experience, bringing actionable insights to organisations of all sizes around the world. In his role, Bradley leads a global team of over 250 professionals and experts that specialise in risk, fraud, anti money laundering, and compliance.
iTWire is always keen to learn from Bradley at the company's annual SAS Innovate conference what's new in his world. This is especially true with AI being used by both the good guys and the bad guys to do what they do better, faster than before, and with new emerging technologies such as real-world practical quantum computing. Yet, this year, iTWire was intrigued by a passing comment Bradley made; while explaining the work SAS does in the financial space he referred to the social impact - vulnerable populations who are most at risk of financial crimes, the elderly who are taken advantage of by scams, and complex schemes that are disrupted such as wildlife trafficking and human trafficking.
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In the past, iTWire has spent time with Sherrie Caltagirone, Executive Director for the Global Emancipation Network (GEN). I've been emotionally devastated by the horrible, horrible tales of exploitation that she sees every day, while humbled and delighted - and inspired - by the work GEN does to disrupt human trafficking operations and embark on effective rescue campaigns, via cutting-edge data analytics. The work GEN performs helps restore the victims of modern-day slavery to dignity.
Thus, iTWire's ears pricked up when Bradley referred to the work SAS performs in this space, also. In fact, in hindsight, it makes perfect sense. Human traffickers need a way to pass their money off as legitimate business transactions. It's the very definition of money laundering. And, with SAS a key factor in anti money laundering tech for banks around the globe, the North Carolina-based statistical software company has an immensely valuable part to play in hindering, even hurting, the human traffickers.
Bradley explained to iTWire that the best piece of advice he received as a young student was to immerse himself in a challenge he was passionate about and had the capacity and opportunity to truly own.
For him, he says the financial crime space has a broader sense of purpose than "merely" protecting the bank's money.
"When I wake up in the morning and think about my role as a technology executive, it's about having a one-to-many impact through software, and serving Government agencies and financial institutions with our software to have that impact."
This broader sense of purpose, he explained, "is rooted in the sense of helping protect vulnerable populations who are most at risk of financial crimes and the risks of bank failures or loss of assets in the marketplace."
That is, of course, the poor, the elderly, and, among others, those human beings who are no different to you or I but find themselves in horrifying situations where their autonomy is totally taken away by the wicked, evil, and cruel perpetrators of human slavery.
Above all else, Bradley said, "my priority is to help organisations leverage their data for social good."
"It gives a tremendous sense of pride to be a small part of this," he says. In fact, every August SAS sponsors and hosts an annual crime forum to ensure banks, law enforcement, and Government are working together. "We celebrate our 20th year together this August."
Further, Bradley mentioned he is involved in non-profit organisations on human trafficking specifically, getting involved and providing support. Now, Bradley is as modest a gentleman as he is dapper and makes no mention of this in his LinkedIn profile or other public biographies.
Of course, what kind of reporter would iTWire be if it could not find it out anyway? In comes The Knoble Network - an alliance dedicated to eradicating human crime, and where Bradley sits on the strategic board of advisors.
"Our mission is to harness the collective power of financial service professionals, law enforcement, regulators, and NGOs, uniting them in a shared commitment to fight against human trafficking, child sexual exploitation, elder financial abuse, and other forms of exploitation that leave individuals vulnerable and at risk," the Knoble Network says.
And more specifically, "at The Knoble, we believe in leveraging the expertise and resources within the financial ecosystem to make a significant impact on Human Crime. Our vision is a world where financial clues are recognised, investigated, and used to put an end to exploitation. We are devoted to awakening individuals to the harsh realities of Human Crime and what they can do to fight back, fostering learning, and promoting collaboration to innovate solutions across all sectors."
Financial institutions are key here; "human Crime, at its core, is financially motivated. Therefore, Financial Institutions have the best ability to detect, prevent, and report criminal activity and help save lives," the Network says. And, "financial Institutions have a unique view of the flow of funds within their organisations, allowing more significant opportunities to expose Human Crime."
“With the help of the Financial Industry, detecting more of these crimes means stopping more of these crimes," said US Government department of homeland security director of the Centre for Countering Human Trafficking Cardell Morant.
And here is where SAS comes in, and the expertise that Bradley brings.
The Global Emanciation Network and the Knoble Network both prove the immense value of data, approaching a similar problem from different ends. GEN uses data analytics to find and free victims; Knoble uses data analytics to find and stop perpetrators.
Either way, they both demonstrate the immense capability for data analytics to tackle some of the greatest problems not only in business, but in society.
iTWire loves to hear what's new and emerging in technology but sometimes it's easy to forget about what this really means for the lives of everyday people who are at the end of the trail.
And this is where SAS comes in, Bradley says; to harness historic patterns, identify if transactions are aligned, use artificial intelligence to understand and identify fraud patterns, and to do it all before the money goes out - and with that protect the vulnerable in society from being exploited by scammers, and to disrupt large-scale organised crime networks that enslave others.
Of course, your data challenges may be different, but the message is similar: we do what we do in tech, not merely to "do" tech, but because there is a human who benefits on the other side.
