25% of UK Businesses Affected by Biometric Fraud in 2022

Elizabeth Greenberg

02 March 2023, 03.06pm

Even as biometric authentication becomes more commonplace as a secure option, it still faces the same security threats as other measures.

According to new research by Shufti Pro, one in four businesses in the UK were affected by biometric fraud and document forgery in 2022.

The rate of global identify fraud and online financial transactions continues to climb, with research indicating a 30% year-over-year increase in document fraud ID theft, authorised push payment scams, fake documentation, and deepfakes.

According to Shufti Pro’s 2022 Identity Fraud Report, 2.9 million cases of fraud were reported, with 1.43 million of those being related to ID theft.

Shufti Pro’s report reveals new types of fraud and industrial trends, explaining methods of document and digital ID manipulation, and providing recommendations for how businesses can protect themselves from fraud in 2023.

The research shows document and biometrics fraud as the top categories of scammers leverage the power of AI to tamper with bills, ID cards, and use deepfake technologies to bypass KYC measures.

With the closures of over 600 banks in the UK, the adoption rate of digital channels has immensely accelerated, whilst directly impacting bank fraud and ID theft.

Digital businesses are not only compromising millions of pounds when they fall victim to fraud, but also suffer irreparable reputational damage and experience a significant drop in customer trust.

Although £1.4 billion of fraud was prevented in 2021, criminals managed to steal £1.3 billion, continuing into 2022 with consumers losing over £609 million in the first half of the year.

“As technology continues to advance, scammers are becoming increasingly creative in their tactics to overthrow security measures and protocols,” said Victor Fredung, CEO of Shufti Pro.

He added: “Although businesses are pushing their customers to use techniques, such as MFA and KYC, scammers are counteracting these safety mechanisms by duplicating and stealing IDs, and using fake liveness tech.”

“Businesses cannot compromise when it comes to their security needs – ensuring the safety and security of their customers must be at the forefront. Using techniques such as 2FA with liveness checks, implementing account deduplication, and consistently monitoring customer accounts for suspicious activity are indisputable steps businesses must take to fight document fraud and theft.”

As the battle against financial crime continues, businesses are urged to consistently review their approach towards document fraud, and implement successful AML and KYC processes to combat fraudsters.