Rede

Working with Rede, the payment arm of Brazil’s largest bank, Itaú, during the early surge of e-commerce was nothing short of a rollercoaster. My team and I were tasked with analyzing user experiences across two fronts: online payment platforms and the on-site card machines used by business owners. Sounds simple? Not quite.

The major headache: merchants struggled to get timely support when their machines failed, while online users doubted the security of the platform. And they had good reason: this was at the dawn of digital payments, where security tech wasn’t exactly cutting-edge. We often found ourselves in the trenches, working closely with Itaú’s security team and even cybercrime units. Hackers would break into systems, harvest credit card data, and sell it like hotcakes.

To get ahead of the game, we took a deep dive into the dark side, infiltrating hacker circles to understand how stolen data was being moved and what gaps they were exploiting. It wasn’t just about plugging leaks - it was about learning from the enemy.

Our daily reports offered more than just stats; they provided a real-time pulse of the brand’s reputation, competitive insights on a national scale, and hard-hitting strategies to fend off virtual attacks.

Thanks to our work, Rede strengthened its position as a trusted payment provider and remains a leader in the Brazilian market today.