European firm Signicat has announced the launch of a new report on the growing threat of AI-driven identity fraud, in partnership with Consult Hyperion . Following this announcement, the research reveals that fraud prevention decision-makers across the region of Europe are experiencing more AI-driven identity fraud, while also expecting it to grow even more.

According to the official press release, companies are unprepared to tackle it and haven’t been able to implement new measures to prevent it yet. The report is entitled `The Battle against AI-driven Identity Fraud` and it dives into how organisations in Europe are battling the growing threat of artificial intelligence-driven identity fraud. The company asked banks, insurance providers, fintechs, and payment providers about their experience on how AI is changing fraud.

The research also included multiple fraud decision-makers across Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the UK. More information on the announcement Included in the key finding in the report is the rise of deepfakes, as AI is being used more extensively and at scale for deepfakes and social engineering attacks, while account takeovers in B2B represent the most common fraud type for business-to-business organisations. In addition,  there also exists an overall confusion on how to combat fraud.

Decision-makers recognise that artificial intelligence will drive nearly all future identity fraud, but there is still confusion and an overall limited understanding of its exact nature, impact, and the needed prevention technologies. At the same time, a third of AI-driven fraud attempts are successful, with 42.5% of fraud attempts detected using AI, with 29% of them being considered to be successful. One in nine also mentioned that the estimated AI usage in fraud attempts is as high as 70% for their organisation, while 38% of revenue loss to fraud is currently estimated to be due to AI-driven attacks.

Over three-quarters of businesses also have teams that are dedicated to the issue of AI-driven identity fraud, aiming to upgrade their prevention technology as well as expecting an increased budget. However, less than a quarter of businesses have actually begun the process of implementing measures, mentioning that the desk is stacked against them as they lack budget, expertise, and time. When it comes to fraud, there has been a shift in the last three years, from creating accounts using forged credentials to compromising accounts that already exist.

Signicat’s research also revealed that account takeover attacks are the most popular type of fraud, as well as deepfakes, accounting for one in 15 fraud attempts. .