What's causing the sudden increase in chargebacks for transactions processed through Checkout.com's Hosted Payment Pages?

Introduction

The sudden increase in chargebacks for transactions processed through Checkout.com's Hosted Payment Pages is a critical issue that demands immediate attention. This analysis will systematically identify, validate, and address the root cause while considering both short-term fixes and long-term strategic implications.

I'll approach this problem by first clarifying the context, then ruling out external factors before diving deep into the product ecosystem, metric breakdown, and data analysis. From there, I'll form hypotheses, conduct root cause analysis, and propose validation methods and solutions.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Looking at the timing, I'm thinking there might be a recent change in the payment flow. Has there been any update to the Hosted Payment Pages in the last 30 days?

Why it matters: Recent changes often correlate with sudden metric shifts. Expected answer: Yes, there was a UI update. Impact on approach: If yes, I'd focus on the changes made and their potential impact on user behavior.

• Considering the nature of chargebacks, I'm wondering about the typical reasons for disputes. What are the most common chargeback reasons we're seeing?

Why it matters: Different chargeback reasons point to different root causes. Expected answer: Fraud or unauthorized transactions. Impact on approach: This would guide our investigation towards either security measures or user authentication processes.

• Given the complexity of payment systems, I'm curious about our integration points. Have there been any changes in how we integrate with card networks or issuing banks?

Why it matters: Integration issues can lead to mismatched transaction data. Expected answer: No recent changes in integrations. Impact on approach: If no, we'd focus more on internal systems and user-facing elements.

• Thinking about user segments, I'm wondering if this increase is uniform across all merchant types. Are we seeing this issue more prominently in any particular industry or merchant size?

Why it matters: Segmented data can reveal patterns specific to certain user groups. Expected answer: Higher impact on small to medium-sized e-commerce merchants. Impact on approach: This would narrow our focus to specific merchant segments and their unique characteristics.