ID Fraudsters are getting Better and Faster.  Are you keeping up?

A new March 29, 2022 report by Javelin Research revealed that identity fraudsters continue to steal money hand over fist, increasing their gains to $52 billion (USD) in 2021. 42 million U.S. adults were affected last year, with their (stolen) identities being used to open fraudulent accounts or takeover existing accounts, using methods such as cyber malware and phishing scams executed by automated software “bots”.

Identity theft itself is horrifically traumatic to consumers who are blindsided by direct losses or allegations of fraud on their name and identity, which can take months if not years to clear up. But the damage doesn’t just stop there – consumer ID theft is often a means to an ambitious and highly lucrative end for fraudsters, who use this information to then steal from businesses.

Whether they open and cash out on a fraudulent loan or directly take over and siphon out account funds, fraudsters continue to refine their techniques and enjoy successful & lucrative outcomes.

Per the Javelin report, new account fraud increased 109% in 2021, enabling criminals to open unauthorized accounts such as merchant accounts, loans, or credit cards.

Account takeover fraud losses were nearly as insidious, up by 90% year-over-year, as criminals used stolen credentials to access and then takeover victims’ online accounts.

Financial fraud today is a roaring rapid, surging downstream to your business. Identity thieves ride the whitewater to get to your front door and into your books.

What’s enabling this fraud?

As “high tech” as our economy and society is today, and despite the litany of digital anti-fraud solutions that purport to scrutinize your retina or typing cadence, fraudsters continue to succeed using a “time-honored” legacy prop: the fake ID.

At UVeritech, we hear a common refrain from defrauded businesses every day and at every conference we attend -- that they allowed a customer to conduct a high value transaction with just a manual, visual inspection of their ID. Whether it’s due to inattentiveness, the need for speed, or inadequate training or processes, these failures always tie back to the fundamental first step of stopping fraud – Know Your Customer by authenticating their physical identity document.

Even in 2022, businesses still visually inspect (eyeball) a customer’s drivers license or accept an emailed copy of the ID, and call it a day. Fraudsters know this! The fake ID production “industry” continues to boom, with no shortage of suppliers willing and able to provide great quality fake IDs for mere pennies.

In just one incident in late January 2022, Customs and Border Protection confiscated 1,200 fake driver license IDs sourced from Hong Kong, that displayed identity credentials from California, Ohio, South Carolina, Michigan, North Carolina, Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas. Some different state licenses actually shared the same buyer’s picture but showed a different name.

And beyond financial crimes, it’s key to remember that identity fraud also facilitates a diverse array of crimes that impact worksite enforcement, critical infrastructure protection, human smuggling and human trafficking, and also terrorism.

Solutions tailored for your Use Case

How do you want to fight ID fraud?

• Is the ID check done right upfront, checking a customer’s bonafides quickly and easily on a counter or kiosk?
• Is it best done in the backoffice, seamlessly integrated with your accounting or CRM system?
• Or how about outside or even within your customer’s homes, remotely authenticating the ID before they come into a branch or conduct a test drive?

Our solutions were designed in consultation with our customers, as to the methods and modes that best fit YOUR business and your needs. We’re also fixated on your customer’s privacy and their personal information security, and so we employ best-class protection methods and give you full control of what data you want to store (or not store).

The TSA uses our systems to allow flyers onto planes. Wells Fargo banks on our technology to let customers into their ledgers. Before you walk out of a T-Mobile with a shiny iPhone, your identity will have been validated by one of our scanners. And hundreds of car dealers across the country rely on our systems to ensure that the driver on a presented drivers license is truly who they say they are.

Across the United States, businesses have for over 20 years trusted UVeritech to secure their transactions, reduce risk, and prevent loss. Call us today to help you counter fraud tomorrow.