A new report from Sumsub, a global full-cycle verification platform, reveals alarming trends in identity fraud across Africa, with Nigeria recording the highest average fraud rate in 2024 at 5.91%, doubling from the previous year.
Other nations with significant fraud rates include Algeria, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Chad.
Sumsub provides customizable solutions in KYC, KYB, transaction monitoring, and fraud prevention.
The Sumsub 2024 Identity Fraud Report, based on millions of verification checks and over three million fraud attempts analysed between 2023 and 2024, highlights the growing accessibility of low-cost fraud technology and its devastating impact on African businesses.
The report underscores the alarming growth of Fraud-as-a-Service (FaaS), which enables fraudsters to outsource critical operations to specialised providers, making identity fraud a pressing issue across the continent.
Key findings from the report include:
African Fraud Trends
The continent saw an average Year-on-Year identity fraud growth of 167 per cent, with Niger, Angola, and South Africa experiencing increases exceeding 300 per cent. Deepfake fraud across Africa surged by an astounding 393% YoY.
Global Fraud Types: The most common forms of identity fraud in 2024 were forged documents (50 per cent), chargebacks (15 per cent), account takeovers (12 per cent), deep fakes (7 per cent), and fraudulent networks (4 per cent).
Industry Impact: Dating platforms (8.9 per cent fraud rate), online media (7.7 per cent), banking and insurance (2.7 per cent), video gaming (2.3 per cent), and cryptocurrency (2.2 per cent) are the sectors most affected globally.
Fraudster Economy: With just $1,000, fraudsters can inflict potential monthly business losses of up to $2.5 million.
“Identity fraud is a serious and growing threat,” said Andrew Sever, co-founder and CEO of Sumsub. “In 2024, 67 per cent of companies reported a rise in fraud incidents. Our annual report not only highlights key fraud trends but also provides actionable insights to help businesses combat this evolving threat.”
The Rise of AI and Deepfake Fraud
The report highlights the troubling role of AI-powered tools in advancing fraud. Deepfakes—manipulated images, videos, and voices used to impersonate individuals—now account for 7 per cent of all detected fraud globally. With their accessibility, fraudsters are now leveraging AI to create fake identity documents, synthetic voices, and life-like videos, making fraud more sophisticated and harder to detect.
Head of AI/AM at Sumsub, Pavel Goldman-Kalaydin, explained: “AI-driven fraud is no longer a future risk—it’s here. Businesses must adopt advanced, multi-layered fraud detection solutions to stay ahead of fraudsters.”
As Africa faces a surge in identity fraud, the need for robust fraud detection systems has never been greater. Countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda are at the forefront of this crisis, with fraud rates more than doubling in recent years.
Credit: Vanguard News
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