Sumsub, a global full-cycle verification platform, has released its fourth annual Identity Fraud Report, which reveals an alarming deepfake fraud growth rate of 393% and identity fraud growth rate of 167% year-on-year between 2023 and 2024.
The report provides a detailed analysis of identity fraud dynamics worldwide based on millions of verification checks and over 3,000,000 fraud attempts analysed between 2023-2024*. It also includes Sumsub’s Fraud Exposure Survey 2024, featuring responses from 200+ risk professionals and over 1,000 end users.
While the overall identity fraud growth rate for Africa stood at 167%, the report noted that Niger, Angola, South Africa are leading the continent with identity fraud rate growth exceeding 300%.
But of the five main fraud types identified in the report, Nigeria recorded the highest average fraud rate of almost 6% among all verifications, the report noted.
Per the report, the spike in identity fraud in Africa is largely because it is increasingly becoming cheaper to commit fraud, compared to the returns. The report, for instance, noted that by investing just $1000, fraudsters can cause a potential $2.5 million in monthly business losses.
“Driven by greater accessibility of ever-cheaper fraud technology, Fraud-as-a-Service is becoming a growing threat to African businesses, with identity fraud across the continent increasing at an alarming rate,” it said.
Key Findings
The top-5 identity fraud types in 2024 are: forged documents (50% of all fraud attempts), chargebacks (15%), account takeovers (12%), deepfakes (7%) and fraudulent networks (4%).
In Africa, Nigeria shows the highest average overall fraud rate in 2024 of 5.91% among all verifications, having doubled from last year, followed by Algeria, Tanzania, Madagascar and Chad.
Uganda, Niger, Cameroon, Kenya and Comoros rank among the top African countries with the highest percentage of fraud in 2024, with Kenya more than doubling its fraud incidence over the past 3 years.
The report also shows a significant 4x increase in the number of deepfakes detected globally across all industries year on year.
Most affected sectors
Meanwhile, the top five sectors mostly affected by identity fraud in 2024 are dating (8.9% fraud rate), online media (7.7%), banking & insurance (2.7%), video gaming (2.3%), and crypto (2.2%).
Looking at the industrial trends, the top five industries with the highest identity fraud growth rates in 2023-2024 are dating (265%), online media (180%), banking & insurance(162%), fintech (156%) and edtech (144%).
The reports also noted that account takeover (ATO) attacks have become one of the most damaging forms of fraud. From 2023 to 2024, ATO cases surged by 250% year-over-year, a staggering growth compared to a 155% increase in 2022-2023.
Sumsub Fraud Exposure Survey 2024 revealed that businesses lost approximately $300,000 per fraud event in 2024, and nearly half of companies (45%) and end users (44%) worldwide reported being victims of identity fraud at least once.
“In today’s digital world, identity fraud poses a serious threat to individuals and companies. In 2024, 67% of firms reported a fraud increase,” says Andrew Sever, co-founder and CEO of Sumsub. “The Sumsub Annual Identity Fraud Report has become a go-to resource for industry leaders, with previous editions cited by the UNODC, Statista, Microsoft, and major media outlets. This year, we’ve expanded our research with insights from end-users and risk professionals, providing a detailed look at current fraud dynamics, future predictions, and actionable tips for businesses. As a full-cycle verification platform, we’re committed to sharing these insights to help the community unite against fraud.”
