85% of consumers in the UAE use artificial intelligence in shopping

A study by Visa titled “Stay Secure” showed that artificial intelligence has become a growing part of the shopping experience for consumers in the Emirates, and that 85% of consumers in the country have used artificial intelligence tools to assist in shopping, whether to check product ratings and user opinions (60%), to compare prices (59%), or to get ideas for gifts (55%).

Visa’s annual study, unveiled today, highlights consumer awareness and behavior regarding digital commerce and fraud.

The study, conducted by Wakefield Research, showed that consumers in the UAE are increasingly relying on artificial intelligence tools in their daily shopping experiences, with trust and security remaining at the top of the decisive factors when completing payment operations.

According to Visa, this trend reflects a broad belief in the benefits provided by modern technologies, as 93% of participants believe that tools supported by artificial intelligence have contributed to making online shopping faster and easier compared to the past.

Artificial intelligence is also playing an increasing role in discovering new brands and stores, as 60% reported that they usually learn about new brands or stores while shopping online.

Despite this demand, consumers are still more conservative when it comes to having artificial intelligence complete purchases on their behalf, as only 32% said that they trust artificial intelligence agents to complete the payment process, which confirms the importance of establishing trust among consumers in the era of commerce based on artificial intelligence agents.

With the expansion of the use of artificial intelligence, consumers have come to view it as part of the solution to confront electronic fraud, as 57% believe that it has contributed to facilitating the detection of fraudulent operations, while 85% believe that it will play a pivotal role in protecting consumers from fraud in the future.

Shopping via social media platforms has become an established part of consumer behavior, as the study showed that 69% of consumers in the UAE have previously purchased products directly via social media platforms.

As digital commerce expands across new channels, fraud risks continue to haunt consumers in cyberspace, with 46% of respondents reporting having been exposed to financial fraud in the past 12 months.

Among those who were exposed to fraud, 38% said that the incident occurred through social media, which is a higher percentage of fraud cases recorded through other platforms such as websites, digital markets, or shopping applications.

The study highlighted some growing concerns about children being exposed to online fraud, as 80% of consumers reported that children around them may have difficulty distinguishing between fraud attempts, and 67% indicated that they had noticed cases of a child being exposed to fraud while playing or shopping online.

This concern comes in conjunction with the increasing access of children to digital commerce tools, as 33% of parents in the UAE stated that their children have access to payment applications via phone or digital wallets.

When it comes to protection from fraud during online shopping, consumers tend to hold institutions the primary responsibility, more than holding it on themselves. 36% believed that banks and financial institutions should bear the main role in protecting consumers, while the same percentage believed that this responsibility falls on regulatory authorities and bodies.

Also, 34% of consumers believe that payment service providers bear a primary responsibility in this area, while only 19% believe that consumers themselves should bear the primary responsibility for protection against fraud.

At the same time, consumers are demanding proactive measures that enhance their sense of security during payment processes, as 60% said that receiving immediate alerts from the bank or payment application when any suspicious activity is detected gives them a greater feeling of security, while 33% feel more comfortable when seeing a familiar and reliable logo during the payment process.

Dibyajyoti Sen, Head of Risk Management for the GCC region at Visa, said that the study shows that while online shopping and commerce through social media platforms continue to grow, online financial fraud methods are also evolving, and consumers see protection from fraud as a shared responsibility, but they expect financial institutions, government agencies and payment service providers to lead these efforts, which underscores the importance of designing security-based payment systems from the beginning.

He added that as commerce moves towards experiences that rely more on smart technologies, the study shows that consumers welcome the ease and comfort that these technologies provide in the shopping experience, but they are still cautious about the idea of ​​completing purchases on their behalf.