Digital fraud attempts in the Philippines dropped by 59.4 percent in the second quarter this year compared with the same period last year, according to the latest analysis of TransUnion.
TransUnion said industries with the largest declines in suspected digital fraud originating from the Philippines during that time frame were telecommunications, logistics and financial services, down by 98.7 percent, 71.1 percent and 61.3 percent, respectively.
These industries have been the most impacted in previous periods, illustrating how fraudsters shift their focus every few months, following the money where it is most profitable, it added.
“Among all the markets that our research covered, the Philippines recorded the second biggest decline in the rate of suspected digital fraud originating from that country, next only to Brazil. It is possible fraudsters have recognized the fraud controls our customers have after experiencing them first-hand and have gone elsewhere for the time being.
However, constant vigilance is still warranted as we’ll likely see them again in industries where transactions are increasing,” said Pia Arellano, president and chief executive officer at TransUnion Philippines.
The sudden shift in focus of fraudsters is apparent in financial services, TransUnion said. Global financial services online fraud attempt rates had risen 149 percent when comparing the first four months of 2021 and the last four months of 2020.
However, when comparing the second quarter of 2021 and the same period last year, the rate of suspected online financial services fraud attempts has still risen, although at a much lower rate of 18.8 percent globally.
TransUnion monitors digital fraud attempts reported by businesses in varied industries such as gambling, gaming, financial services, retail, and travel and leisure, among others.
The conclusions are based on intelligence from billions of transactions and more than 40,000 websites and apps contained in its flagship identity proofing, risk-based authentication and fraud analytics solution suite, TransUnion TruValidate.
More than one-third of consumers continue to be targeted by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related digital fraud, TransUnion said.
As online fraud attempts against businesses continue to escalate, one in three consumers said they have been targeted by a digital fraud scheme related to COVID-19 during the second quarter of 2021.
TransUnion’s Consumer Pulse study in June 2021 found that approximately 36 percent of global survey respondents said they were targeted by fraudsters in COVID-19-related digital schemes. Almost half or 48 percent of Philippine respondents said they were targeted.
Phishing is the No. 1 type of COVID-19-related digital fraud impacting global consumers in the second quarter. Among global consumers who say they were targeted with COVID-19-related digital fraud, 33 percent state they have been targeted by or fallen victim to such fraud.
Stolen credit card or fraudulent charges was the second most cited type of COVID-19-related online fraud among those targeted, affecting global consumers at 24 percent.
Phishing was also No. 1 in the Philippines at 40 percent, followed by third-party seller scams on legitimate online retail websites at 29 percent.
“One in three people globally have been targeted by or fallen victim to digital fraud during the pandemic, placing even more pressure on businesses to ensure their customers are confident in transacting with them,” said Arellano.
“As fraudsters continue to target consumers, it’s incumbent on businesses to do all that they can to ensure their customers have an appropriate level of security to trust their transaction is safe all while having a friction-right experience to avoid shopping cart abandonment,” Arellano added.
