In the identity verification industry, there’s a game-changing capability that sets Veriff apart. A feature most providers lack, and many businesses don’t even know to look for. While legacy solutions focus on document accuracy and processing speed, which are important but increasingly insufficient in today’s complex threat landscape, Veriff has developed something far more advanced. Enter Veriff CrossLinks: a real-time fraud intelligence network designed to combat fraud holistically, offering a level of protection no other IDV platform can match.

And recent insights from the Veriff Fraud Index highlight how urgent the industry needs this evolution. Nearly 96% of consumers worldwide have encountered fraudulent activity while using online services in the past year, and three-quarters have personally suffered a financial impact from such attacks. In particular, the report underscores the growing sophistication of fraud, with more than 78% of people targeted by AI-powered or deepfake fraud, and almost half expressing significant concern about these technologies. Against this backdrop, users increasingly demand more robust protections. Over 97% of respondents believe advanced identity verification and biometrics are crucial, especially in financial institutions and ecommerce. It’s clear: the stakes have never been higher and crosslinking has never been more important.

The power of cross-customer intelligence

Every day, fraudsters attempt to use the same stolen identities, fabricated documents, and sophisticated spoofing techniques across multiple platforms. Traditional IDV solutions treat each customer as an island; a fraudulent document that gets caught at Company A won’t be flagged when the same fraudster tries it at Company B minutes later.

Veriff’s CrossLinks changes this game entirely by creating a data mesh. Our Industry CrossLinks automatically share fraud insights across customers operating in the same industry, creating a defensive network that gets stronger with each new customer and every new verification.

Impact of crosslinking on fraud prevention

Here’s what makes this powerful: when our system detects that multiple sessions are completed by the same user, document, or device across different customers, it creates automatic links that provide early risk management indicators. This cross-customer intelligence contributes up to 6% of all prevented fraud – but more importantly, it reduces false positive and negative rates up to 30% depending on configuration.

The Veriff CrossLinks advantage isn’t just about technology; it’s about scale and market position. Building an effective fraud prevention consortium requires:

1. Critical mass of customers across industries

2. High volumes to generate meaningful patterns

3. Diverse industry coverage to detect cross-organization fraud attempts

4. Advanced AI system to process and correlate massive datasets in real-time

Many platforms simply don’t have the customer base or processing volume to make cross-customer insights effective. It’s a network effect that strengthens with scale, and Veriff’s 2,000+ customers provide the foundation that smaller platforms cannot match.

The compound effect of crosslinking

This is where Veriff’s advantage becomes truly compelling. Our customers include some of the world’s largest platforms – from financial services giants to major marketplaces and mobility companies. The fraud patterns we see from high-volume customers create intelligence that protects all customers in our network.

When a sophisticated fraud attempt is thwarted at a leading financial institution, that insight immediately enhances fraud detection for marketplaces, mobility platforms, or gaming networks. Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks leverages its global reach across finance, marketplaces, mobility, and gaming to identify meta-patterns that static solutions miss. Fraudsters often test and recycle their tactics across industries, but with Veriff, a document forgery method detected in a European bank can trigger instant alerts if it surfaces in a North American gaming platform. This creates an “early warning” system, where the network’s collective intelligence protects every customer, shutting down fraud rings before they gain traction.

Real-time fraud insights – how Veriff’s CrossLinks detects what others miss

While many identity verification providers limit their focus to analyzing documents—or even sessions—in isolation, Veriff takes a fundamentally different approach. We operate a real-time fraud insights network that identifies patterns across our entire customer ecosystem. This isn’t just about leveraging better technology; it’s about a transformative approach to fraud prevention that only the power of scale can achieve.

Multi-dimensional crosslinking

Veriff’s CrossLinks operates simultaneously across multiple detection layers:

Document-based insights

Advanced document analysis that detects signs of reuse, manipulation, or forgery through:

• Document similarity comparison across verification attempts
• Recognition of repeated or suspicious document attributes
• Detection of synthetic, altered, or fabricated identity documents
• High-precision document representations enabling forgery pattern recognition

Identity-based tracking:

Cross-identity behavioral and attribute profiling to uncover hidden links between fraudulent attempts:

• Matching data points such as document, device, biometric, and network  across platforms and customer ecosystems
• Detecting anomalous or high-risk identity attribute patterns
• Device-level and behavioral analytics for identifying persistent bad actors

Network intelligence:

• Infrastructure-level insight into coordinated or repeated attack patterns:

• Detection of organized fraud clusters and shared risk signals

• Monitoring for suspicious network activity and high-risk connection behaviors

• Cross-attempt correlation using device and network identifiers

The Swiss cheese model of defense

What makes Veriff’s approach unique is the “Swiss cheese model”: multiple overlapping fraud detection systems where CrossLinks work alongside velocity checks, device analysis, and behavioral patterns. When sophisticated fraudsters defeat one layer, others catch them.

The strength of a multilayered detection engine lies in its ability to prevent fraud patterns from recurring through design, not chance or manual intervention. If a signal bypasses one layer, it is detected by another, whether through device fingerprinting, behavioral analytics, metadata, network intelligence, or velocity checks. This layered approach ensures coverage across the entire fraud lifecycle and is particularly critical as deepfakes and generative AI–driven attacks continue to accelerate, as documented in Veriff’s Fraud Index 2025.

Speed of detection

Traditional fraud prevention is reactive: you catch fraud after it happens. Veriff’s CrossLinks provide real-time insights. When a known malicious user tries to verify as a new customer, the system instantly highlights why this session carries increased risk.  

This real-time decision support means fraudsters can’t simply “shop around” to different customers using the same stolen identity. Once caught in our network, they’re flagged across all relevant customers immediately.

Multi-account detection

Perhaps most importantly, our system detects when the same fraudulent identity attempts verification across multiple customers within the same industry. This multi-account detection capability helps customers identify organized fraud operations that coordinate attacks across platforms.

This isn’t just about catching individual fraudsters – it’s about detecting and disrupting organized crime networks that operate across multiple platforms simultaneously.

The compound intelligence effect

For participating customers, every verification session adds to our fraud intelligence dataset. But when you’re processing millions of sessions across diverse industries, something powerful happens: you start seeing meta-patterns that reveal organized fraud operations.

Geographic fraud insights

Fraud patterns vary significantly by geography. A technique common in Eastern Europe might be rare in North America, while Latin American fraud patterns might be completely different from Asian approaches. Veriff’s global customer base across 230+ countries and territories creates geographic fraud insights that other competitors with a more regional focus cannot match.

When a sophisticated fraud technique emerges in one region, our global network means customers worldwide benefit from that insight immediately. A document forgery pattern discovered in Europe instantly strengthens fraud detection for customers in North America, Asia, and elsewhere.

The network defense advantage

Veriff’s data advantage lies in its ability to create a network defense effect. When a sophisticated fraud attempt is detected within our network, every customer immediately benefits from Veriff´s Industry Crosslinking, enhancing their protection.

This is fundamentally different from traditional fraud prevention, where each company builds defenses in isolation. With Veriff’s consortium approach, an attack on any customer strengthens defenses for all customers.

Beyond individual companies – how consortium intelligence transforms industry security

The identity verification industry is at an inflection point. While fraudsters become increasingly organized, well-resourced, and collaborative, most companies still operate in silos – fighting sophisticated organized crime with fragmented, individual defenses. Veriff’s Crosslink customer consortium represents a fundamentally different approach: collective defense that matches the sophistication of modern fraud operations.

The collaboration gap in financial crime

Recent insights from Financial Crime 360 conferences reveal a stark reality: fraudsters today are organized, well-resourced, and highly collaborative – sharing data freely and exploiting new technologies like AI with alarming speed. In contrast, legitimate financial institutions still struggle with fragmented systems and limited data collaboration.

This collaboration gap creates vulnerabilities that organized crime exploits systematically. While individual companies invest heavily in fraud prevention, they’re fighting distributed, coordinated attacks with isolated, individual defenses.

Cross-company fraud operations

Modern fraud operations don’t target single companies – they execute coordinated attacks across multiple platforms simultaneously. A sophisticated identity theft operation might attempt to:

• Open accounts at multiple financial institutions
• Create profiles on various marketplaces  
• Register for mobility services
• Access gaming platforms
• Apply for multiple employment verification services

Without cross-customer intelligence, each company sees only one piece of a larger fraud operation. With Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks, a consortium approach, the entire pattern becomes visible, enabling proactive defense across all targeted platforms.

The early warning system

Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks create what amounts to an early warning system for the entire ecosystem. When a sophisticated fraud attempt is detected and blocked at one customer, that intelligence immediately flags similar attempts across other customers.

This transforms fraud prevention from reactive (catching fraud after it succeeds) to real-time (preventing fraud before it causes damage). The financial impact is significant – preventing fraud is always more cost-effective than remediating it after the fact.

Breaking down information silos

The UK’s FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) is exploring ways for institutions to share “confirmed fraud” insights to strengthen collective defenses. It reflects a broader industry recognition that collaboration is essential as fraud becomes more organized and technology-driven.

Veriff is already leading in this direction. Our Industry CrossLinks identifies meaningful connections across customer environments within existing legal and contractual frameworks, giving customers the benefits of shared insight today. It strengthens defenses proactively by delivering broader, real-time intelligence exactly when it matters.

The network effect in security

Security experts understand that network effects create exponential improvements in defense capabilities. Each new customer in Veriff’s consortium doesn’t just add their own protection – they strengthen protection for every existing customer.

This network effect means that large customers benefit from insights generated by smaller customers, and vice versa. A fraud pattern discovered at a startup could prevent significant losses at an enterprise customer. A sophisticated attack blocked at a major financial institution could protect dozens of smaller companies.

Regulatory compliance through collaboration

Increasingly, regulators expect companies to demonstrate not just individual compliance, but industry-wide collaboration in fraud prevention. Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks consortium approach helps customers meet these expectations by participating in shared defense networks.

The ability to demonstrate that your fraud prevention includes intelligence from across the industry strengthens compliance positions and reduces regulatory risk.

Speed of response to emerging threats

Fraud techniques now spread organically across online communities – one attacker’s success becomes everyone’s playbook within hours.

Consortium intelligence flips this dynamic: defenses developed in one part of the network immediately strengthen protections for all.

Building trust through transparency

One of the key themes emerging from Veriff’s research is that “transparency and cross-industry trust are the foundations of the next phase of fraud prevention.” Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks embodies this principle by creating shared visibility into fraud patterns while protecting individual customer privacy.

This approach builds trust not just between Veriff and our customers, but between different industries and sectors in their collective fight against organized crime.

The future of identity verification

As fraud becomes more sophisticated and coordinated, individual company approaches become less effective. The future belongs to those who collaborate, create shared intelligence, and drive collective defense.

Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks customer consortium is more than a current platform advantage – it represents the future of identity verification, where resilience is built on collective intelligence, rather than isolated systems that can be easily targeted.

The competitive reality – why no other IDV vendor can match Veriff’s consortium advantage

After analyzing the identity verification landscape, one thing becomes clear: while every vendor claims advanced fraud detection, only Veriff operates a true customer consortium with cross-customer intelligence. This isn’t just a feature difference – it’s a fundamental structural advantage that other platforms cannot easily replicate.

What’s missing? Cross-customer intelligence

Notably absent from competitor materials is any form of cross-customer intelligence – no shared fraud signals, no network effects, no industry-level threat sharing.

And this isn’t an oversight; true cross-customer intelligence requires capabilities most providers simply don’t have.

The customer network advantage

Veriff’s customer roster – Blockchain, Bolt, Deel, Monzo, Starship, Trustpilot, Webull, and others – creates an unmatched ecosystem. High-volume, high-diversity customers generate intelligence that strengthens defenses for everyone in the network.

Even a well-funded competitor starting today would need years to build comparable diversity and volume – years during which Veriff’s network continues compounding its advantage.

What other platforms actually compete on

Competitive analysis shows most vendors now lean on:

• Feature completeness (KYB, case management, workflows)
• Regional specialization
• Vertical focus
• Pricing strategies

But none compete on cross-customer intelligence – because they can’t. It’s not a product gap; it’s a structural one.

What this means for buyers? 

For buyers, this distinction is critical. Prospects aren’t simply choosing between similar vendors. They’re deciding between two fundamentally different approaches to fraud detection. The traditional approach analyzes each verification in isolation, leaving it blind to cross-platform fraud operations and unable to detect coordinated attacks. In contrast, Veriff’s consortium approach leverages pooled fraud intelligence across customers, industries, and regions. This enables the early detection of emerging patterns and the ability to stop coordinated attacks before they spread, offering a proactive and comprehensive defense against fraud.

The bottom line

Veriff’s Industry CrossLinks is not just a feature – it’s a structural advantage the market cannot easily replicate. It’s built on scale, diversity, infrastructure, and network effects that compound over time. This is Veriff’s superpower: We don’t just verify identities, we empower customers to participate in a collective defense network that gets smarter, stronger, and more resilient with every verification.

The post Fraud network: Veriff CrossLinks – the hidden superpower appeared first on Veriff.

Veriff is an identity verification company entrusted with large amounts of personal data. We take this responsibility seriously and are transparent about our security practices. 

In this article, we explain the robust measures we use to protect your personal information at every stage of the identity verification process.

Why is secure Identity Verification important?

Secure identity verification is essential for building trust in the digital world. With online fraud on the rise, businesses and individuals need assurance that their data is protected. Veriff provides this assurance through a commitment to security, compliance, and privacy-first principles.

Rising fraud threats: According to the Veriff Identity Fraud Report 2025, fraudulent activity surged by more than 20% in 2024 alone. Among these cases, impersonation fraud made up a staggering 82%, underscoring the increasing sophistication of cybercriminal tactics. Meanwhile, account takeover incidents grew by 13%, and multi-accounting cases rose by 10% compared to the previous year.

Sophisticated tactics: Impersonation fraud accounts for 82% of cases, highlighting the need for advanced defense mechanisms.

Compliance: Veriff adheres to major data protection frameworks like GDPR in Europe, CCPA in the US, and LGPD in Brazil, ensuring your rights are protected.

How does Veriff process personal data?

Veriff processes personal data to perform identity verification on behalf of our business customers. We act as a data processor, which means the company that asks you to verify your identity determines the purpose of the data processing.

Your rights. Veriff recognizes every individual going through its verification flow as a data subject. The data subject is always in the center of Veriff’s service. You as the data subject, are entitled to specific information and the exercise of data privacy rights. That is why Veriff makes it clear in its Privacy Notice that Veriff is providing its verification services to other companies. Veriff collects your data via its verification service only if you have been directed there by a business customer of Veriff. Veriff’s customer, the company asking you to verify your identity, decides how and for which purposes Veriff processes your data. This also means they must tell you how they and Veriff process your data, and ensure you can exercise your rights along the way.

Veriff’s services process personal data. The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (known as GDPR) defines personal data as any information about an individual who can be identified, directly or indirectly, by name, ID number, or other factors relating to an individual’s physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural, or social identity. The data collected by Veriff for your identification is personal data and Veriff’s customers must ensure that they have a valid legal basis for allowing Veriff to use the data for its services.

What are your rights as a data subject?

As a data subject, you have specific rights regarding your information. The business that directed you to Veriff is responsible for informing you how your data is used and how you can exercise your rights. Our Privacy Notice provides clear information on our role and responsibilities.

What kind of data does Veriff process?

Veriff processes the personal data needed for identification, which can include your name, ID number, and images of your face and identity documents. This may include biometric data, a type of sensitive information that requires stricter legal protections but provides a strong layer of security against fraud.

How do we protect your data?

Veriff employs a multi-layered security strategy to safeguard your data. This includes proactive risk management, advanced technical measures, and strict internal policies. Our approach is built on a “security by design” philosophy that integrates protection into every aspect of our service.

Dedicated risk management

Our privacy and compliance teams conduct regular data protection impact assessments. This approach helps us proactively identify and mitigate risks associated with our identity verification solutions. We ensure data access is granted on a least-privilege basis, meaning employees can only view information essential for their roles.

These data protection impact assessments not only fulfill legal requirements but also allow Veriff to proactively identify and address the risks related to our products and services. By leveraging our in-house legal competence and taking proactive information security measures—such as employing multi-factor authentication and advising on password manager use—Veriff ensures the highest level of data security to uphold our commitment to safeguarding your privacy and protect your data.

No selling or unauthorised sharing of end user data

As stated in Veriff’s Privacy Notice, we’ll disclose your personal data to the customer who has authorized us to provide you with the identity verification service. Additionally, as an integral part of the identity verification service, your personal information may be disclosed to our carefully chosen sub-processors. These are service providers helping us with different data processing and cloud storage services, being essential to providing our identity verification service. Internally, any access to data is granted on a need-to-know and least-privilege basis. This means that our employees are only granted the information and access rights strictly necessary for their specific tasks—helping prevent insider threats and ensuring your data remain safe from internal and external compromise. This ensures your data is always kept safe with no unauthorized access.

Defined data storage periods

The term for keeping your data is fixed in internal policies and customer agreements. Veriff never keeps data indefinitely. For example, as a standard, personal data which is processed on behalf of our customers is stored for no longer than 3 years. However, in the context of identity verification services, this may differ depending on the customer’s instructions. That is why the company that asked for your identity verification is the one that can tell you the exact time for how long your data is stored and used for identity verification. Storing your data only as long as necessary is an essential security measure to help keep your data secure and reduce risks such as exposure through social media leaks or legacy systems.

Encryption at rest and in-transit

In Veriff, data is encrypted both at rest and in transit. Encryption is the process of converting data into an unreadable format, making it inaccessible to the user who does not have the decryption key. Encryption enables secure and confidential end-to-end protection of the data by protecting its content.

Encryption is a core component of our data security. Veriff uses strong encryption protocols to protect your data at all times. Data in transit is encrypted using Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.2 or a newer version.

– Data in transit is encrypted using Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.2 or higher, securing data as it moves over the internet.

– Data at rest is encrypted using Advanced Encryption Standard (AES-256), a globally recognized standard.

In addition, all internal applications hosted by Veriff and used to manage personal information are also channeled into VPN as an extra measure to reduce the attack surface and to provide an additional layer of security around the standard TLS. These practices help ensure your data is not compromised via WiFi network vulnerabilities or phishing emails.

What are Veriff’s security certifications?

Veriff’s commitment to security is proven by independent, internationally recognized reports and certifications. These documents confirm that our systems and processes meet the highest standards for data protection and information security.

– SOC 2 Type 2: This is an independent third-party examination that demonstrates how well Veriff’s security controls operate over a year.

– ISO/IEC 27001:2022: An international standard for information security management system (ISMS), validating our systematic, risk-based approach to continually manage and protect assets. 

– UK Cyber Essentials: This UK government-backed scheme certifies our defenses against common cyber threats.  the UK’s Cyber Essentials scheme is designed to help protect organizations against a whole range of the most common cyber attacks. 

You can learn more about the Cyber Essentials from the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre’s webpage. These security measures are just some examples that are put in place here in Veriff. We take all necessary precautions to give you peace of mind when using our identity verification service—even in your day-to-day interactions online. We always follow the relevant updates and implement additional measures to ensure compliance.

Where can you read more?

Want to dive deeper?

Learn more about our security practices on our Security and Compliance

Learn More

How Valr protects users and data while scaling fast with Veriff

When Valr — a global crypto exchange with more than one million users — set out to scale rapidly while navigating an evolving regulatory and fraud-landscape, they turned to Veriff for a solution that would keep their onboarding friction low and their data and users protected. As Valr’s Compliance Manager puts it: “We needed something intelligent and constantly evolving … the crypto world moves fast and is a constant target for fraud.”

Veriff’s advanced identity verification platform, with biometric and liveness checks, wide document-set coverage (particularly for Africa), and strong integration support, gave Valr the confidence to grow aggressively without sacrificing compliance or user trust.

The result: Valr could launch growth campaigns, bring in thousands of new users in a single day, and rest assured that behind the scenes, data was being handled rigorously, fraudsters blocked, and real users onboarded seamlessly.

Securing the digital world: Veriff’s vision for a safer, trust-first future

At Veriff, we know that fraud doesn’t stand still—so neither can we. As identity threats grow more sophisticated—from biometric deepfakes and AI-generated impersonations to evolving social engineering tactics—Veriff is at the forefront, proactively safeguarding the digital world. We don’t wait for tomorrow’s risks to arrive—we anticipate them.

Our commitment begins with cutting-edge technology. Veriff continuously evolves its trust infrastructure, supported by AI models, real-time risk analysis, and advanced threat detection systems. But technology alone isn’t enough. True digital safety requires a broader vision.

That’s why we go further—collaborating with regulators, contributing to global trust frameworks, and partnering with industry leaders to shape a secure and trustworthy digital landscape. Because for us, building trust online isn’t optional—it’s essential.

Trust is also about privacy and compliance. Veriff aligns its data protection practices with leading global standards, including the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), while staying agile amid emerging frameworks such as the EU’s AI Act.

Looking ahead, Veriff’s vision is clear: a world where individuals move freely and securely through digital spaces—supported by identity verification that is seamless, privacy-first, and globally scalable.

We’re not just responding to the threats of today. We’re shaping the internet of tomorrow—one where trust fuels progress and people come first.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Does Veriff sell my data?

No, Veriff never sells your personal data. We only share your information with the company that requested your identity verification and with essential service providers who are part of our secure verification process.

2. How long does Veriff keep my data?

Veriff stores personal data for a fixed period and is typically no longer than three years. We never store personal data indefinitely.

3. What is biometric data and why does Veriff process it? 

Biometric data refers to information about your unique physical characteristics, like your facial features. Veriff processes it to uniquely identify you and provide a strong layer of security against impersonation fraud. 

4. How is my data kept safe during transfer? 

Your data is encrypted both in transit (while it travels over the internet) and at rest (when it is stored). We use industry-standard protocols like TLS 1.2 and AES-256 encryption to ensure its confidentiality and integrity.

5. Who is responsible for my data?

The company that asked you to verify your identity is the data controller, meaning they decide the purposes and means of processing your data. For the purposes of the service, Veriff acts as the data processor, carrying out the verification securely on their behalf.

The post How Veriff keeps your personal data safe appeared first on Veriff.

In an increasingly digital world, age verification is no longer just a best practice—it’s becoming a legal necessity. With rising concerns about  minors accessing harmful or inappropriate content online, governments across the EU, UK, and Ireland are introducing age verification regulations that require businesses to implement effective age verification systems. From social media to streaming services and e-commerce, age verification for online services in the UK and online age checks across the EU are under the spotlight. Regulatory scrutiny is intensifying, and non-compliance can lead to hefty fines and reputational damage.

This guide outlines the digital age verification legal requirements and compliance frameworks in the EU and UK/IE, highlights regional differences,and offers practical advice for businesses to adhere to age verification standards.

Why Age Verification is a growing legal priority

The digital landscape offers unparalleled access to information and entertainment—but also exposes children to inappropriate or harmful content. According to the EU Kids Online 2020 report, 33% of children aged 9–16 had seen sexual images, and 10% of those aged 12–16 accessed harmful content monthly. This troubling data has prompted regulators to crack down on unrestricted access and promote digital age verification to uphold child safety.

As a result, age-restricted content laws in Europe and the UK are becoming central to digital compliance and child protection initiatives. For businesses, keeping up with evolving age verification for e-commerce EU requirements is now essential, not optional.

EU-wide legislation: Harmonized but varied in application

1. Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD)

• Overview: The AVMSD lays the foundation for protecting minors from harmful audiovisual content by encouraging national regulations across EU member states.
  
  
• Key Requirements:
  
  • Harmful content must not be accessible to minors.
  • Media services must improve accessibility for disabled users.
    
• Enforcement: National regulators implement and enforce these directives, guided by the European Regulators Group for Audiovisual Media Services (ERGA).
  
  

2. Digital Services Act (DSA)

• Overview: Enforced since February 2024, the DSA regulates intermediary services such as social media, app stores, and online platforms.
  
  
• Key Requirements:
  
  • Platforms must ensure privacy and safety for minors, especially in recommender systems and advertising transparency.
  • Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) must conduct risk assessments and implement robust compliance protocols.
    
• Penalties: Fines up to 6% of global turnover for failing to meet EU digital identity regulations and age-related standards.

National EU examples: Germany, France, and Ireland

Germany

JMStV and JuSchG

Key Requirements:

1. Block access to harmful content
2. Implement KJM-accredited legal age verification solutions.

• Penalties: Up to €300,000 and potential imprisonment.
  
• Supervisory Authority: KJM and the Federal Testing Agency for Media Harmful to Minors.
  

France

Law no. 2023-556

• Key Requirements:
  • Age checks for users under 15.
  • Parental consent mechanisms.
  • Compliance with Arcom and CNIL technical standards.
    
• Fines: Up to 1% of global turnover.
  

Ireland

Fundamentals for a Child-Oriented Approach to Data Processing

• A standards-based framework rather than standalone law.
  
• Encourages:
  
  • A “floor of protection” unless verified otherwise.
  • Clear consent processes and child-specific data protection.
    
• Enforced under GDPR by the Data Protection Commission.

United Kingdom: A post-Brexit pioneer in online safety

The Online Safety Act (2023)

• Scope: Applies to UK-based and international services that allow user-generated content or publish age-restricted content like pornography.

• Key Requirements:
  
  • Remove illegal content.
  • Prevent children from accessing age-inappropriate material.
  • Enforce The UK Online Safety Act (formerly known as the UK Online Safety Bill)

As of 25 July 2025, any business that hosts or distributes potentially harmful content to minors must implement age verification solutions. Read more about the Safety Act and its implications on businesses [here].

• OFCom Guidance (2023) outlines approved methods:
  
  • Photo-ID verification
  • Facial age estimation (a leading-edge age verification technology UK tool)
    
• Penalties: Up to £18 million or 10% of global turnover, plus criminal liability for senior managers.

Age Appropriate Design Code (Children’s Code)

• In force since 2021, this code applies to digital services likely to be accessed by children.
  
• Focus Areas:
  
  • High-default privacy settings.
  • Age-appropriate communication.
  • Data minimization.
    
• Sanctions: Enforced under the UK GDPR, with fines up to €20 million or 4% of turnover.
  

See Age Estimation in action

Experience how Veriff’s AI accurately estimates age in real-time—no ID required.

Boost compliance, user safety, and onboarding speed with cutting-edge biometric technology.

Demo age estimation

Compliance requirements across the EU & UK/IE

• Identify applicable age verification regulations in their jurisdictions.
• Implement robust age verification and other sector-specific solutions.
• Regularly update their processes in line with evolving laws
• Train staff to handle compliance appropriately
• Prepare for audits and enforcement actions

Most affected industries

• E-commerce (selling age-restricted products)
• Social media (underage user protection)
• Streaming services (age-rated content)
• Adult content platforms

These industries must act swiftly to avoid enforcement actions, customer trust loss, and brand damage.

Best practices for effective age verification

• Move beyond self-declaration: These are no longer acceptable for legal compliance. 
• Facial age estimation: provides a balance between accuracy and privacy, allowing you to determine user age without requiring an ID.
• Deploy document-based checks: Accept government-issued ID where appropriate.
• Provide clear user guidance: Help users understand why age verification is required and how their data is handled.

How Veriff can help

Veriff operates globally, and our online age verification allows our customers to ensure a person’s capacity to access restricted content with little to no friction. Veriff has an arsenal of age verification solutions that can be used to verify that the person has reached the required age. For example, age validation utilizes government-issued identity documents, such as a government-issued ID card or driver’s license, or age estimation that allows users to verify their age without requiring identity documents. This means that our customers can stay compliant with existing laws requiring the implementation of age verification systems and stay ahead of the curve.

• Veriff’s Age Estimation solution uses facial biometric analysis to estimate a user’s age without requiring the user to provide an identity document. This low-friction solution will enable you to convert more users faster and make it easy for businesses to verify any users who want to access age-gated products or services, but who do not want to share their identity documents, possibly for privacy or ethical reasons.

These tools ensure clients stay compliant with legal age verification regulations mandated by applicable laws.

Veriff’s age verification solutions are uniquely positioned to support platforms like SuperAwesome in their efforts to create a safer online environment for children. By seamlessly integrating Veriff’s age validation and estimation tools, SuperAwesome can ensure that only users above the required age threshold access their platforms, effectively enhancing safety measures. This collaboration enables SuperAwesome to uphold its commitment to safeguarding young audiences while providing developers with the necessary tools to comply with regulatory requirements and foster a secure online community.

As Veriff´s founder and CEO Kaarel Kotkas, explained in a recent Biometric Update interview, building trust online depends on making sure users are who they say they are—and how old they claim to be. Kaarel emphasized that “age verification should not come at the cost of privacy or user friction,” and that biometric tools like facial age estimation represent the next frontier for protecting minors while enhancing digital trust.

The age verification landscape in the EU and UK/IE is evolving quickly. For businesses operating across these regions, staying compliant means more than just legal box-ticking, it’s about protecting young users and safeguarding brand trust.

“Age verification should not come at the cost of privacy or user friction, and biometric tools like facial age estimation represent the next frontier for protecting minors while enhancing digital trust.”

Kaarel Kotkas Founder & CEO Veriff

The post Age verification regulations in the EU and UKIE: What businesses need to know by 2025 appeared first on Veriff.

One standout discussion from the Payment Expert Summit was the panel, “Blocking Bad Customers While Streamlining Good Transactions,” featuring Veriff’s Amit Tzur alongside Nick Patrick (Radar), Galina Bineva (OKTO), Trent Striplin (Payments & Fraud Expert), and moderator Sue Page (Neosurf). The conversation offered practical insights into the balance between fraud prevention and user experience in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Fraud tactics are getting smarter—and more global

Speakers across the panel highlighted how fraud is becoming increasingly sophisticated. From spoofed Wi-Fi networks and injected device IDs to deepfake video sessions and phone farms, fraudsters are deploying advanced tools to bypass traditional security methods.

Amit Tzur emphasized the growing threat of AI-generated fake identities and deepfakes, especially when companies rely solely on document-based checks or unsecured APIs. He also noted a rise in account takeovers, multi-account abuse, and bonus exploitation, all of which require enhanced verification strategies to mitigate.

Key takeaway:

Advanced fraud tactics call for equally advanced prevention methods—particularly in regions like Latin America, where fraud levels are high and tactics evolve quickly.

LATAM as a case study for innovation

Latin America received special attention during the panel for its role as a proving ground for innovative fraud prevention strategies. Both Amit Tzur and Galina Bineva noted that in many LATAM markets:

• Payment systems are linked to government-issued ID numbers, creating a built-in safeguard against anonymous fraud.
• Biometric verification and access to public registries are helping replace document scans with streamlined identity checks.
• Financial inclusion initiatives have normalized privacy workflows, enabling smoother onboarding through digital ID systems.

Key takeaway:

LATAM markets are showing how digital ID, biometrics, and government integrations can minimize friction while boosting fraud defenses.

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A call for industry collaboration

A recurring theme was the need for greater collaboration across operators, technology vendors, and regulators. Panelists explored the idea of centralized intelligence sharing—for example, anonymized device or identity hashes that can help operators recognize known fraudsters without violating user privacy.

Trent Striplin pointed out that regulatory support may be the lever needed to push commercial teams toward implementing more secure verification steps. Amit Tzur added that fraudsters work together—and so should the industry, particularly when tackling cross-platform threats like bonus abuse and identity spoofing.

Key takeaway:

Operators must collaborate—securely and transparently—to stay ahead of bad actors who are already pooling their resources and knowledge.

Smarter use of AI and machine learning

Artificial intelligence and machine learning featured heavily in the conversation, with panelists detailing how these tools are evolving:

• Veriff’s CrossLinking technology aggregates multiple user sessions to detect anomalies and patterns across devices and networks, helping flag suspicious activity even across industries.
• Nick Patrick from Radar discussed how geolocation is being enhanced through AI-generated custom geofences—mapping not just countries or states but specific high-risk areas like stadiums or coffee shops where fraud rings operate.
• AI also enables dynamic fraud scoring and predictive risk assessment, replacing labor-intensive reviews with real-time decision-making.

Key takeaway:

AI isn’t just enhancing fraud detection—it’s powering scalable, cross-industry insights beyond the limits of human review.

KYC alone isn’t enough

While KYC remains foundational, the panel made it clear that single-point identity checks are insufficient in today’s threat landscape. Instead, multi-layered approaches are essential. This includes:

• Biometric verification
• Device fingerprinting
• Geolocation tracking
• Network and session analysis

These layered approaches allow platforms to detect fraud with greater accuracy while minimizing false positives that could frustrate legitimate users.

Key takeaway:

Multi-layered identity and fraud prevention strategies—especially those leveraging biometrics and cross-session analysis—are essential for secure, seamless experiences.

Actionable insights for operators

Summarizing the panel discussion, four strategic imperatives emerged for gaming and betting operators:

• Leverage AI and data cross-linking to flag emerging fraud patterns early.
• Invest in biometrics and registry integrations to reduce friction in high-risk markets.
• Encourage industry collaboration on secure data sharing frameworks.
• Stay agile on compliance, especially in jurisdictions like the U.S. and LATAM, where regulatory landscapes are shifting.

How Veriff supports operators in a high-risk market

Veriff’s momentum in the Americas has reached new heights. The company has seen a 2.5x surge in business volumes across Latin America in 2024; it has just opened a regional HQ in São Paulo, Brazil. Meanwhile, the US remains Veriff’s largest market, fueling the majority of its revenue and verifications.

At Veriff, we help operators balance speed, compliance, and security without compromising on the user experience.

Veriff’s new US Database Verification solution, announced at the SBC Summit Americas 2025, is designed for organizations operating in or serving the US market, particularly in high-compliance industries like finance, e-commerce, gaming, and healthcare.

“This solution cross-references user data against trusted US sources, including government and private databases such as AAMVA,” said Gabriel Barbabela, Lead Growth Product Manager at Veriff. “It boosts accuracy, reduces fraud, and ensures users are who they claim to be — fast.”

US Database Verification enables organizations to streamline the identity verification process and establish users’ identities in the US by cross-referencing user data with trusted authoritative sources, helping businesses minimize fraud, increase accuracy, and deliver a high level of identity assurance.

Our Identity Verification Suite seamlessly integrates with gaming and payments platforms, enabling:

• Fast, accurate verification of users through biometric and document checks
• Automated age validation to block underage access
• Geolocation tools to meet regional regulatory requirements
• Fraud Protect and Fraud Intelligence to stop deepfakes, detect device manipulation, and identify known bad actors via global blocklists and predictive scores
  
  Our goal is to make identity verification fast for genuine users and impossible for fraudsters.

Final thought

The SBC Summit made one thing clear—protecting customers and streamlining experiences no longer have to be opposing goals. With the right tools and partnerships, they can go hand in hand.

The post Key takeaways from the SBC Summit Americas appeared first on Veriff.

Brazil is stepping into a new regulatory era, rapidly becoming one of Latin America’s largest online gaming markets. But alongside market growth, fraud has surged, —targeting platforms, promotions, and players alike. With losses topping BRL 297.7 billion ($54B) from scams in Brazil alone last year​, iGaming operators entering the region must act fast.

According to the Veriff Fraud Index: Latin America, Brazil ranked among the top three countries in the region for identity fraud in 2024, with a sharp rise in multi-accounting, deepfake-based onboarding attacks, and bonus abuse through synthetic profiles. Fraud rates were notably higher in mobile-first markets and platforms offering real-money gaming, reinforcing the need for scalable identity verification and biometric defenses.

This 2025 guide to Brazil online gaming fraud prevention unpacks the risks, regulatory requirements, and how Veriff helps platforms protect revenue and ensure compliance in Brazil’s dynamic market.

iGaming fraud tactics in Brazil: What to watch

According to the Veriff Fraud Index: Latin America, fraud in Brazil’s digital economy is becoming increasingly sophisticated, —particularly within high-risk verticals like iGaming. In 2024, Brazil experienced a surge in identity-based fraud and multi-accounting abuse, fueled by loopholes in onboarding processes.

Synthetic identities & identity farming

Fraudsters continue to blend legitimate and fabricated identity data to create scalable fake profiles. This tactic enables repeat bonus abuse and underage access—especially where appropriate identity verification procedures, including biometric verification and age assurance are absent.

 Geolocation spoofing via VPNs & proxies

 Regional bonus campaigns and regulatory restrictions have made Brazil a hotspot for geo-bypass fraud. Attackers mask their locations to access Brazil-exclusive promotions, bypass self-exclusion systems, or conceal offshore operations.

Bot networks & multi-accounting rings

Automated scripts and emulators are increasingly used to mass-register fake accounts—exploiting sign-up bonuses and inflating payout requests at scale. These behaviors are often paired with device spoofing and account cycling.

Crypto-enabled money laundering

As crypto adoption outpaces regulation in Brazil, fraudsters leverage anonymous wallets and decentralized exchanges to obfuscate the origin of illicit gaming funds. Veriff’s report highlights this trend as a growing AML blind spot across LATAM.

 Understanding Brazil’s regulatory shift

Brazil’s legal framework—anchored by Law No. 13.756/2018 and enhanced by Law 14.790/2023—requires operators to:

• Verify user identity with CPF and biometric checks.
• Ensure users are 18+, using robust age estimation and document validation.
• Comply with AML rules in line with the Brazilian regulatory framework,  particularly as defined by Law No. 9.613/1998 and enforced by the Financial Activities Control Council (COAF).
• Enable face biometrics with liveness detection for secure access as mandated by Normative Ordinance No. 722​.

With face biometrics and CPF validation now mandatory for legal betting accounts, platforms without digital IDV solutions risk non-compliance and user drop-off.

How Veriff secures iGaming growth in Brazil

Veriff identity verification solution aligned with Brazilian regulations

Veriff’s full-service identity verification solution helps ensure compliance with Brazilian player onboarding regulations by combining facial biometrics with national ID validation for secure, legal-age access.

Biometric Authentication & Liveness Detection

Gaming companies in LATAM rely on Veriff’s biometric authentication to stop identity spoofing and prevent deepfake, spoofed selfie, and repeat offender abuse—ensuring compliance with Brazil’s biometric mandates.

LATAM use cases: How Veriff delivers real-world impact

In Latin America, identity verification isn’t just a regulatory checkbox—it’s a gateway to access, inclusion, and fraud resilience. Veriff has already helped leading LATAM platforms unlock new markets and protect users through advanced digital ID verification.

In our LATAM case study collection, clients from sectors like finance, crypto, and online services achieved faster onboarding, greater fraud protection, and regulatory compliance by integrating Veriff. These success stories highlight how biometric authentication and automated document verification solve the region’s challenges with high fraud rates, informal identity documents, and digital inclusion gaps. For iGaming operators entering Brazil, these insights offer a clear blueprint for secure, scalable growth.

We have been partnering with Veriff since 2020 to address identity verification and to acquire valuable additional information to integrate into our fraud controls. Fraud challenges are very dynamic, new patterns arise frequently, and the existing ones change very fast, so close communication, high collaboration and effective responsiveness between Veriff and Kueski have been critical to helping us evolve.

SAHARI CABELLO SVP OF CREDIT RISK, KUESKI

Conclusion: Fraud prevention is non-negotiable in Brazil’s iGaming market

Brazil’s market opportunity is massive—but fraud and non-compliance risks are just as big. From deepfakes to crypto laundering, only robust identity systems can protect your platform.

Veriff brings AI-powered biometrics, AML tools, and regulatory-grade IDV to LATAM iGaming operators—making fraud prevention fast, scalable, and user-friendly.

Uncover the truth behind LATAM Fraud

Download the Veriff Fraud Index: Latin America 2024. Explore region-specific fraud tactics, industry benchmarks, and practical strategies for reducing identity abuse in Brazil and beyond.

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From multi-accounting to sophisticated chargeback scams, attackers exploit promotional systems intended to attract new users. If left unchecked, bonus abuse undermines platform profitability, violates gambling regulations, and erodes player trust.

This guide explores how bonus abuse works, the new tactics to watch, and how Veriff’s identity verification and fraud prevention technologies are helping gaming operators stay compliant and secure.

What is Bonus Abuse?

Bonus exploitation is the act of registering for a service multiple times in order to repeatedly obtain promotions or sign-up bonuses that are intended solely for new users. This practice is also referred to as multi-accounting and is particularly prevalent in the online gambling or iGaming industry.

Bonus exploitation is also known by various other terms, such as promotion misuse, bonus hunting, and bonus manipulation.

Although it primarily impacts websites offering poker, casino, and sports betting services, any business that relies on sign-up bonuses as a marketing tactic could be susceptible to this risk.

📌As Techopedia notes, bonus abuse is one of the most widespread online gaming scams—and it often overlaps with identity theft and money laundering.

 Tactics used in Bonus Abuse

1. Multi-accounting with synthetic identities

Fraudsters create dozens of accounts using deepfakes or stolen IDs to repeatedly exploit sign-up bonuses.

2. Chargeback abuse & fraudulent withdrawals

Scammers deposit funds, claim bonuses, withdraw winnings—and then issue chargebacks, costing platforms even more.

3. VPNs, device spoofing & geolocation bypass

Using VPNs and emulators, attackers trick systems into thinking they’re in bonus-eligible regions like the UK or LATAM markets.

4. Reusable identity exploits

Repeat offenders slightly modify names, emails, or devices to bypass weak ID checks and get around bans.

Bonus Abuse fraud in 2025: Key trends

Bot networks

• Scalable automation allows fraud rings to claim hundreds of bonuses within minutes—undetected by legacy systems.

Deepfakes & synthetic IDs

• AI-generated identities can now fool basic KYC checks, giving fraudsters free rein to abuse promotions.
•  Global geo-targeted exploits
• Players use IP-masking tools to target region-specific bonuses, especially in LATAM and US markets.

Fraud as a vehicle for money laundering

• Bonus abuse often serves as a gateway for criminal laundering operations, blending illegal funds into legitimate player activity.

Why Bonus Abuse is a compliance risk

Gaming regulators worldwide demand strong anti-fraud controls. Platforms failing to address bonus abuse face:

• Regulatory fines
• License suspensions
• Loss of user trust

Regulatory spotlight:

• US: Online gambling is regulated at the state level, with strict age and location verification rules. See our comprehensive guide to gambling laws and age verification in the US.
• UK: The Gambling Commission mandates fair bonus terms and strict AML practices.
• LATAM: Countries like Brazil are enacting new gaming regulations (e.g., Law 14.790/2023), requiring flexible fraud and ID verification strategies.

👉 Learn more:AML regulations in the global gambling industry

How Veriff stops Bonus Abuse at scale

Veriff provides end-to-end fraud prevention solutions to detect and block bonus abuse across all risk vectors:

Biometric authentication & liveness detection

Confirm that every new account belongs to a real person—not a bot, deepfake, or reused selfie.

Device fingerprinting & IP intelligence

Track repeat devices and detect anomalies in IP geolocation and behavior.

Age & address verification

Ensure players meet local gambling regulations with precise ID, DOB, and jurisdiction checks.

Fraud signal sharing & identity graphs

Prevent bonus abuse by linking multiple suspicious behaviors across accounts and sessions.

AML screening & risk scoring

Identify and flag potentially laundered funds disguised as gambling winnings or bonus abuse.

 Bonus Abuse in action: Scenarios

🇺🇸 Scenario 1: Multi-accounting in the US

A player uses 10 synthetic accounts created with stolen data and different VPN locations to bypass detection, but Veriff’s liveness detection and IP tracking flag the unusual activity, blocking registration. According to Veriff’s Identity Fraud Report 2025, fraudsters often use emulators to mimic multiple devices, enabling them to create numerous accounts to exploit sign-up bonuses or free bets. This type of multi-accounting and bonus abuse is a common tactic across gaming, cryptocurrency, and currency exchange platforms.

🇧🇷 Scenario 2: LATAM VPN Abuse

A fraud ring in Brazil targets UK bonus offers. Veriff’s device fingerprinting and regional ID checks block access due to location mismatch.

🇬🇧 Scenario 3: Repeat offender with modified identity

A known fraudster re-registers with a new email and altered personal info. Veriff’s identity graphs link the patterns, marking the user as high-risk.

Conclusion: Make Bonus Abuse fraud a thing of the past

With bonus abuse tactics evolving rapidly, online gaming platforms must act fast. Traditional fraud tools aren’t enough—Veriff delivers the advanced technology needed to win the fight.

By combining identity verification, behavioral analytics, and fraud intelligence, Veriff empowers gaming platforms to offer exciting promotions—without getting burned.

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The digital gaming market is thriving, expected to exceed $370 billion by 2027, with the US alone contributing over $140 billion by 2025. As players immerse themselves in stunning visuals and action-packed missions, game publishers and marketplaces battle behind the scenes against a formidable threat: fraud. Gaming has become a near-universal part of teen life — 85% of U.S. teens report playing video games, and 41% say they do so daily, according to a 2024 Pew Research Center study. Gaming is more than just entertainment: it’s a major social channel, with 72% of teen players citing spending time with others as a key reason for gaming, and 47% saying they have made a friend online through games.

Fraud prevention is no longer a cost center — it’s a growth engine. By turning fraud prevention into a proactive strategy, gaming companies can recover lost revenue, boost customer satisfaction, and future-proof operations. Veriff delivers the infrastructure to help platforms approve more legitimate players and stop fraud before it hits the bottom line.

In this blog, we break down the key fraud trends impacting gaming platforms in 2025, show you how to identify threats early, and highlight how proactive fraud strategies drive revenue protection and brand loyalty. Learn how the right fraud prevention approach can turn security into a strategic advantage for your platform.

The hidden threats undermining gaming revenue

Fraud’s two-fold impact

• Financial loss: In 2023, Roblox reported over $110 million in chargebacks. Industry-wide, 10% of all digital gaming transactions are suspected to be fraudulent.
• Customer churn: Rules-based systems incorrectly flag up to 25% of legitimate transactions as fraud. These false positives result in frustrated players — and 40% never return.

Key fraud vectors

• Synthetic Identity fraud: Fraudsters use deepfakes and fake IDs to pass checks.
• Bonus Abuse: Multi-accounting to claim referral rewards.
• Underage fraud: Minors bypass controls using shared or fake credentials.
• Chargeback Abuse: Users exploit refund policies, hitting margins hard.
• Account Takeovers: Stolen credentials give access to stored payment details.

Emerging trend: 

According to Veriff’s Identity Fraud Report, online communities, including video gaming, saw a significant proportion of impersonation fraud, with over 90% of all fraud in the vertical attributed to impersonation. While social media platforms continued to see high rates of document fraud, video gaming also experienced a notable increase in document fraud, highlighting the growing sophistication of attacks in this space.

Online communities, including video gaming, saw a significant proportion of impersonation fraud, with over 90% of all fraud in the vertical attributed to impersonation. While social media platforms continued to see high rates of document fraud, video gaming also experienced a notable increase in document fraud, highlighting the growing sophistication of attacks in this space.

Ira Bondar Fraud Platform Lead Veriff

AI-powered fraud prevention is the new meta

Adaptive AI in action

Unlike traditional tools, AI-powered fraud systems analyze vast behavioral patterns — from device fingerprinting to how a credit card is typed or pasted. Rather than viewing each purchase in isolation, AI looks for weak signals and recurring anomalies.

For example, if a player uses a new card, copies and pastes payment info, and logs in from a new IP — AI knows these behaviors signal risk. It’s not just one data point, it’s a pattern.

The results of AI-driven defense

• Reduce false positives by up to 90%
• Increase approval rates for genuine users
• Prevent scalable fraud rings before they do damage

AI enables secure, frictionless purchasing — not just reducing fraud, but lifting conversion rates by up to 15%.

How Veriff unlocks revenue and compliance

Veriff goes beyond standard fraud tools. We provide end-to-end identity, fraud, and compliance infrastructure purpose-built for gaming platforms.

Our core products:

• Age Verification & Estimation: Meet compliance needs without slowing onboarding.
• AML Screening & Fraud Intelligence: Identify laundering threats and detect behavioral anomalies.
• Mobile Intelligence & Device Fingerprinting: Stop fraud rings and multi-accounting.
• Biometric Authentication: Ensure returning users are who they say they are.

We help video-gaming companies approve more genuine users and eliminate more fraud, turning trust into a scalable asset.

Ira Bondar Fraud Platform Lead Veriff

Global fraud compliance in a dynamic regulatory era

As online gaming grows, so does the scrutiny from regulators. Laws governing age verification, content moderation, and platform responsibility are evolving at different speeds across the globe. The gaming industry faces strict age verification laws to protect minors from accessing age-restricted games or gambling platforms. Non-compliance can lead to significant fines and reputational damage. As gaming platforms expand, implementing robust age verification solutions has become essential for meeting legal requirements and enhancing user safety.

United States

Age verification in the US is becoming a state-level mandate, especially for platforms offering access to “harmful content”—typically games with mature themes such as violence, nudity, or gambling mechanics.

Ad Dmytro Saschuck highlights in this article, under new state-specific laws, operators must verify that players are over 18 before allowing access to certain content. These requirements mirror the regulatory frameworks we’ve seen in industries like adult content and tobacco sales.

Key takeaways:

• Age gates must be enforced before content access — not after registration.
• Self-certification (e.g., “click to confirm age”) is no longer sufficient.
• Gaming platforms targeting minors must comply with COPPA and state-specific privacy laws.

This signals a broader shift toward legally binding age assurance protocols, not just for adult content, but for games with even moderate levels of violence or in-app monetization.

UK & EU

The UK is actively enforcing its Age Appropriate Design Code, also known as the Children’s Code, while the EU is advancing age verification under broader Digital Services Act (DSA) and GDPR frameworks.

“In the EU and UK, it’s not just about confirming a user’s age. It’s about building age-appropriate digital experiences—where underage users are never exposed to harmful mechanics, and platform design defaults to child-safe standards,” says Dmytro Saschuck, commenting on the evolving expectations around online safety in Veriff’s blog on Age Verification in the EU and UKIE. As regulations tighten and platform accountability increases, businesses are expected to go beyond mere compliance and proactively design environments that prioritize the safety and well-being of younger users.

Key takeaways:

• Games must assess and mitigate risk to underage users.
• Platforms are expected to have data minimization strategies—collect only what’s necessary to verify age.
• Fines can be imposed for exposing minors to inappropriate ads, chat features, or loot boxes.

LATAM

Age verification in Latin America is becoming an increasingly urgent topic, as governments begin to confront the rise of harmful content online. While there is no unified regional framework yet, several countries—including Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia— are actively working on legislation focused on protecting minors in the digital space. These efforts primarily target sexual, violent, or psychologically distressing content, meaning enforcement is still highly content-specific rather than platform-wide.

The fragmented regulatory landscape poses challenges, particularly for platforms operating across multiple jurisdictions. However, it also creates opportunities for scalable age verification solutions. Technologies like Veriff’s AI-powered selfie-based age estimation help bridge the gap, especially in regions where users may not have access to official ID documents or where ID checks may be seen as too invasive or premature.

With mobile adoption accelerating and internet access expanding rapidly, LATAM’s digital economy is at a turning point. While the region currently accounts for a smaller share of global gaming revenue, the pressure to regulate is intensifying in tandem with user growth, especially among younger demographics.

Key takeaways:

• Governments in LATAM are pushing for content-specific age verification laws to protect minors.
• Platforms must navigate fragmented regulations across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
• AI-based age estimation offers a scalable solution where ID access is limited.
• Youth-driven digital growth is increasing regulatory pressure on the region’s platforms.

The bottom line — Fraud prevention as a revenue driver

Gaming companies that treat fraud prevention as a growth function unlock:

• Higher player trust and retention
• Lower churn and false-positive rejection rates
• Increased approval rates and faster onboarding

By investing in identity intelligence and adaptive fraud detection, platforms not only protect revenue, they expand it.

Gaming is no longer just about fun and competition — it’s also about responsibility. Our job is to help platforms protect players while meeting complex regulations. That’s where Veriff comes in.

Ira Bondar Fraud Platform Lead Veriff

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Online gambling fraud is a growing concern for online gambling operators, regulators, and players. With increasing digitalization, fraudsters exploit vulnerabilities in identity verification, bonus offers, transaction monitoring, and account takeover to commit financial crimes. 

This blog explores the latest fraud trends, regional insights, regulatory requirements, and best practices for iGaming operators to enhance security and compliance.

The growing challenge of iGaming fraud in 2025

According to the Veriff Identity Fraud Report 2025, an iGaming experienced a significant surge in physical adversary-in-the-middle attacks in 2024. These attacks have become a key enabler for fraud tactics such as multi-accounting, identity farming, and account takeover, particularly in response to the industry’s use of sign-up and bonus incentives. With lucrative rewards at stake, fraudsters exploit these vulnerabilities to gain financial advantage. Addressing these sophisticated threats requires advanced security measures to protect platforms and maintain user trust.

As fraud tactics evolve, so does the iGaming industry itself. The market size of the online gambling industry in the United States has experienced significant growth from 2017 to 2023, with projections indicating continued expansion through 2029. Starting at just $1.28 billion in 2017, the market has steadily increased, reaching $19.54 billion in 2023, representing a 39% increase from 2022. Forecasts suggest this upward trend will persist, with the industry expected to grow to $39.82 billion by 2029. The growth is driven by the increasing popularity of online casinos, digital lotteries, and sports betting, reflecting broader trends in digital entertainment and regulatory advancements in online gambling across various states. If these projections hold, the U.S. online gambling industry will more than double in size within the next six years.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, iGaming saw a big rise in physical adversary-in-the-middle attacks in 2024. With sign-up and other bonuses on offer, multi-accounting, identity farming, and account takeover have become increasingly prevalent in this vertical – with physical adversary-in-the-middle attacks the means with which to drive these fraud tactics.

Ira Bondar Fraud Platform Lead Veriff

Key iGaming fraud trends by region based on Veriff Identity Fraud Report 2025

United States

The US shows a concerning trend, with a significant increase in fraud attempts in the video gaming industry (11.7% YoY increase). This suggests potential tactics include identity theft to create fake accounts, bonus abuse through exploiting promotions or in-game rewards, and potentially money laundering via in-game transactions or virtual item trading.

United Kingdom

Despite seeing a decrease in net fraud rate (3.97% in 2024 vs 4.55% in 2023), the region remains prone to identity fraud. We witness identity theft attempts for fraudulent account creation, money laundering through the anonymity of online gaming platforms and in-game transactions, and various cyber threats like account takeovers and phishing attacks targeting gamers.

Latin America (LATAM)

The consistently high fraud rate (6.48% in 2024) points toward prevalent identity theft for creating accounts and making fraudulent purchases, bonus abuse by exploiting new account sign-up incentives and other promotions, and potentially money laundering through in-game transactions or virtual item trading.

Types of iGaming fraud and their impact

1. Identity fraud

Fraudsters use deepfake technology to create synthetic identities, bypassing KYC and AML checks. These fake accounts exploit promotional bonuses and enable multi-accounting fraud. Additionally, fraudulent behaviors like multi-accounting and identity theft can exploit gambling accounts to manipulate bonuses, launder money, or conduct chargeback fraud, highlighting the importance of strict verification measures to protect these accounts from fraudsters.

Prevention strategy: Implement biometric authentication, age validation, and age estimation solutions.

2. Money laundering

Online casinos and sportsbooks are often misused for illicit fund transfers through high-value bets and structured withdrawals.

Prevention strategy: Enforce transaction monitoring, risk-based AML protocols, and “ensure compliance with applicable local AML laws and regulations, while having regard to international guidelines and recommendations”

3. Bonus Abuse

Fraudsters exploit welcome bonuses by creating multiple fake accounts. VPNs and Tor browsers further conceal their activities, making detection harder. This type of exploitation is known as bonus abuse fraud, where strategies like ‘bonus hunting’ are used to manipulate promotional offers.

Prevention strategy: Deploy device fingerprinting and IP analysis to detect suspicious behavior.

Powering Secure & Seamless Transactions for EasygoStake

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Regulatory frameworks for iGaming fraud prevention

A recent September 2024 Statista poll reveals that nearly half of U.S. adults (47%) believe the gambling industry should face stricter regulations, with 25% supporting much stronger regulation and 22% favoring somewhat more regulation. Meanwhile, 27% of respondents are satisfied with the current level of regulation and do not see a need for change. A smaller portion of the population, 14%, advocates for less regulation, with 6% supporting much less regulation and 8% preferring somewhat less oversight. Interestingly, 12% of respondents remain uncertain whether gambling regulations should be adjusted. These findings highlight the ongoing debate over gambling laws in the U.S., where concerns about consumer protection, responsible gaming, and industry transparency continue to shape public opinion and regulatory discussions.

United States

• Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA): Regulates financial transactions linked to online gambling.
• Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) & FinCEN AML Compliance: Requires stringent KYC and AML measures for operators.

United Kingdom

• UK Gambling Act 2005: Governs responsible gaming and fraud prevention.
• Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA): Enforces AML compliance for gambling operators.
• UK Online Safety Act 2023: Addresses fraud risks in online platforms, including gaming.

Latin America

• Brazil’s Law No. 14,790/2023: Regulates online gaming and mandates identity verification.
• Mexico’s Gaming & Raffles Law: Implements fraud measures for iGaming operators.

Powering Secure & Seamless Transactions for EasygoStake

Discover how Veriff helped EasygoStake enhance security and trust in online gaming.

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How Veriff strengthens iGaming fraud prevention

Case Study: How Veriff partnered with EasyGo / Stake 

Stake is an online gaming and sports betting platform operating globally in 15 languages. In 2024, Stake approached Veriff with a challenge to support their global expansion, with a strong focus on Stake Brazil, their third-largest market.

Veriff partnered with EasyGo / Stake, a leading online gaming and betting platform, to enhance its identity verification (IDV) processes and ensure compliance with stringent regulatory requirements. With a global user base and high transaction volumes, Stake needed a seamless yet robust verification system to prevent fraud, streamline onboarding, and meet evolving compliance demands. By integrating Veriff’s AI-driven IDV solution, Stake significantly reduced verification times, improved pass rates, and strengthened fraud prevention measures. This partnership enabled Stake to deliver a smoother user experience while maintaining high-security standards, strengthening trust among its players and regulators alike.

Veriff has a really clean customer interface, the prototype was really easy to use, and the system came to a decision really quickly. It was just a really great user experience, and that’s something that’s really important to us.

Dan Richardson Chief Product Officer Easy.go

Why operators trust Veriff for iGaming security

Automate and scale your operations while expanding in both emerging and established markets with confidence. Veriff’s industry-leading identity verification and fraud prevention solutions are designed to build trust online, ensuring a seamless and secure user experience across various industries. Our superior document coverage, encompassing over 12,000 document specimens from 230+ countries and territories in 48 languages and dialects, enables fast and reliable onboarding while supporting regulatory compliance.

Veriff’s key Identity Verification solutions:

• Veriff’s Document and Identity Verification solution provides fast and accurate user authentication, reducing fraud risks and maintaining high conversion rates.
• Utilizing Fraud Protect and Fraud Intelligence, Veriff adapts to evolving fraud tactics, including deepfake detection and synthetic identity fraud prevention.

Age Validation & Compliance

• Veriff’s Age Validation solution combines document verification with device and behavioral analytics to prevent unauthorized access and ensure compliance with age restrictions across gaming, social media, and eCommerce platforms.
• Age Estimation leverages facial biometric analysis to determine a user’s age, even when identity documents are not available.

AML Screening & Risk mitigation

• Veriff’s AML Screening solution automates Politically Exposed Persons (PEP) and sanctions list checks, ensuring businesses comply with anti-money laundering regulations.
• Ongoing monitoring for adverse media and high-risk individuals enhances risk mitigation strategies.

Proof of Address & Data Verification

• Veriff’s Proof of Address solution integrates trusted data sources to verify customer addresses, ensuring businesses meet KYC and regulatory standards.
• Data Verification enables real-time validation against government databases, such as US SSN, Mexico INE/CURP, providing an additional layer of authentication.

Learn how Veriff securely processes personal data to ensure privacy, compliance, and seamless identity verification:

Why Veriff?

High accuracy & fraud prevention

Reduce false positives and improve fraud detection with advanced AI-powered checks and network-wide fraud insights.

Seamless user experience

Optimized verification flow ensures high first-pass approval rates, improving conversion while reducing friction.

Global coverage & compliance

Meet regulatory requirements across multiple jurisdictions with customizable IDV, AML, and KYC solutions.

Scalability & growth

Veriff’s automation-first cloud-based solutions offer flexibility, easy API integration, and seamless adaptation to market conditions.

Together, these solutions empower businesses to build trust, mitigate fraud, and create a secure digital environment for their customers.

Conclusion: The future of iGaming fraud prevention

As fraudsters evolve, iGaming operators must adopt AI-driven fraud detection, robust KYC processes, and regulatory compliance measures. With Veriff’s expertise, online gaming platforms can protect players, ensure compliance, and enhance trust in the industry.

Want to safeguard your iGaming platform? Contact Veriff today for cutting-edge fraud prevention solutions.

The post 2025 iGaming fraud prevention guide: trends, types, and regulations appeared first on Veriff.

Online romance has never been more popular — or more dangerous. As digital relationships increasingly shape how people meet, connect, and build trust, organized fraudsters have evolved alongside the platforms that enable those connections. In 2026, detecting romance scams will require new skills, updated policies, and coordinated responses from individuals, marketplaces, and regulators.

For many people, learning about romance scams evokes a mix of empowerment and shock. That reaction is normal. This guide aims to transform awareness into action by helping individuals stay protected and supporting platforms in creating safer, more trustworthy experiences. It breaks down how modern romance fraud operates, identifies key warning signs decision-makers should focus on, and provides practical, evidence-based steps to detect, prevent, and respond to scams.

Fraud is usually talked about in terms of money. But what it really takes from you is your sense of safety, trust, and self.

Cecilie Fjellhøy Co-Founder LoveSaid

Why romance scam detection matters in 2026

Romance scams continue to cause severe financial and emotional harm — and they’re especially prevalent around Valentine’s Day, a time when more people seek love and connection online. According to warnings from the FBI, scammers often build trust over time using fake profiles on dating apps and social media, then exploit that emotional connection to request money, cryptocurrency, or personal information. These schemes can start innocently but quickly turn manipulative and financially devastating if red flags go unnoticed.

Even before generative AI became widely accessible, law enforcement consistently ranked romance fraud among the most financially damaging online crimes. Victims often lost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, alongside long-term psychological trauma and privacy violations. In the U.S. alone, federal agencies have received tens of thousands of reports and hundreds of millions in losses, with many more cases going unreported because victims feel embarrassed or reluctant to come forward.

For platforms and marketplaces, this means fraud prevention can no longer rely on surface-level signals alone. Effective protection requires a layered approach that combines behavioral detection, identity verification, and fast, transparent response workflows.

How modern romance scams work

Modern romance scams are structured, intentional, and increasingly sophisticated. They typically progress through predictable stages — now enhanced by AI tools and data aggregation.

Profile creation

Scammers use AI-generated or stolen images to build appealing profiles. Multiple accounts across platforms reinforce fabricated backstories and create credibility.

Grooming and personalization

Personal details scraped from social media or public sources are used to tailor messages. Hyper-personalized communication builds trust quickly and lowers suspicion.

Escalation

Once emotional attachment forms, scammers introduce requests for money, gifts, or sensitive data — often framed as emergencies, investment opportunities, or travel obstacles. Requests to move conversations off-platform are common.

Exploitation and exit

After extracting funds or credentials, scammers disappear or repurpose victims’ identities for further fraud. These tactics are not limited to inexperienced users. They are designed to deceive busy professionals, engaged parents, and people who assume basic platform cues are sufficient.

The latest romance scam tactics in 2026

Three technologies now define the evolution of romance fraud:

• AI-generated profile photos that pass casual inspection and evade basic filters
• Deepfake video and synthetic audio, undermining traditional trust signals like video calls
• Hyper-personalized messaging, using scraped data to accelerate intimacy and urgency

Because these scams combine technical sophistication with emotional manipulation, detection must address both dimensions. Platforms and users should adopt a simple guiding principle: in real relationships, proof of identity is never a burden. In romance scams, it’s the first thing fraudsters try to avoid. Genuine people understand the need for trust and transparency, while scammers rely on secrecy, excuses, and delays to keep their deception intact. Recognizing this difference can help shift the focus from emotional pressure to practical verification, making it harder for fraudsters to operate.

He used the word ‘we’ a lot — ‘we are in a war’, ‘we need to be strong’. But it wasn’t him taking out the loans. It was me.

Cecilie Fjellhøy Co-Founder LoveSaid

Romance scam red flags: Key warning signs to watch for

Romance scams often show early warning signs across profile details, messaging behavior, and technical patterns. New or overly polished accounts, rapid “soulmate” language, and pressure to move conversations off-platform can all signal potential fraud. Additional red flags include inconsistent personal stories, urgent emotional requests for money, and suspicious technical clues like multiple accounts linked to the same device or AI-generated image artifacts. While no single sign is definitive, recognizing these patterns helps users and trust teams prevent harm through awareness and layered detection.

Case study: building trust on Feeld through verification

A growing number of dating platforms are responding to these challenges by rethinking how trust is built into the user experience. One example is Feeld, a dating app designed for people exploring relationships, intimacy, and identity outside traditional norms.

Feeld serves a diverse global community, including queer, kink, and ethically non-monogamous users — many of whom place a high value on discretion, safety, and psychological security. From its founding, Feeld has positioned itself as a “community of communities,” built to support honest self-expression without compromising personal safety.

As Lavina Lim, Product Lead, Core Experience at Feeld, explains: “Feeld is the dating app for the curious. We define curious as people who are open-minded and interested in dating outside of heteronormative practices.” This framing captures Feeld’s mission to create an inclusive space for individuals exploring relationships beyond traditional norms, emphasizing openness, authenticity, and a broader understanding of connection and desire.

The challenge: identity misrepresentation and fraud

Like much of the dating industry, Feeld faced an ongoing challenge with identity misrepresentation, catfishing, and romance scams. For a small, self-funded team, relying on manual verification simply wasn’t sustainable — especially as the community increasingly called for stronger trust signals. As Lavina puts it, “The dating industry is plagued by identity misrepresentation — bad actors pretending to be someone else to catfish people or run romance scams.” Feeld needed a scalable solution that could confirm members were who they claimed to be, while still protecting the privacy of users who depend on anonymity or partial anonymity for safety.

Feeld chose Veriff not just for its verification technology, but for its collaborative, partner-led approach. Dating platforms face unique edge cases, and Feeld needed a solution that could adapt to its community’s specific needs.

Veriff stood out because they didn’t just give us a tool — they worked with us as partners.

Lavina Lim Product Lead Feeld

This close collaboration enabled Feeld to design verification flows that felt natural within the app, supported robust testing, and avoided regressions during rollout.

The path forward

Romance scam detection in 2026 requires a balance of human judgment, advanced technology, and cross-sector collaboration. Scammers will continue to leverage AI-generated media and emotional manipulation — but individuals and platforms are not powerless.

With layered defenses, including identity verification, behavioral analytics, user education, and rapid response, marketplaces can reduce harm, improve recovery outcomes, and create safer digital spaces for connection

The post Romance scam detection in 2026: Why trust now requires verification appeared first on Veriff.

Adversary-in-the-Middle (AiTM) attacks represent a significant security threat, allowing malicious actors to intercept and manipulate communications to steal data or gain unauthorized access. Techniques such as ARP poisoning, email hijacking, Wi-Fi eavesdropping, session hijacking, IP spoofing, and DNS spoofing are commonly employed in these attacks.

DNS spoofing, or DNS cache poisoning, is a particularly dangerous method where attackers inject corrupt DNS data into a resolver’s cache. This causes users to be redirected to malicious websites without their knowledge, compromising sensitive information. Unlike standard AiTM techniques that focus on intercepting and relaying communications, DNS spoofing targets the address resolution process itself. By altering core DNS infrastructure, attackers can redirect traffic from multiple users to fraudulent destinations simultaneously. This ability to disrupt large-scale internet navigation makes DNS spoofing a highly effective and far-reaching attack vector.

Similarly, AiTM (Adversary-in-the-Middle) attacks also target user trust, but take a different approach. These attacks intercept communication between a user and a legitimate service through phishing techniques. In an AiTM attack, the attacker typically sends a phishing email containing a link that directs the victim to a fake login page (redirector or AiTM phishing page) designed to mimic a legitimate service. When the victim enters their credentials, the attacker captures these details and may also steal session cookies to bypass multifactor authentication (MFA). Using stolen session cookies, the attacker can authenticate themselves into the victim’s account, gaining unauthorized access to emails or other resources. This access is often exploited for malicious campaigns, such as reading sensitive emails, altering mailbox rules, or initiating Business Email Compromise (BEC) schemes to target external recipients in the victim’s network.

As fraud detection and prevention technologies become more advanced, attackers are adapting their tactics to exploit the weakest point in the security chain: the identity holder. Instead of directly targeting secure systems, fraudsters increasingly use sophisticated techniques like adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) attacks to manipulate legitimate users into unwittingly facilitating malicious activities. Attackers can intercept data if a user authenticates into an application using an unsecured protocol like HTTP. 

Ira Bondar, Fraud Platform Lead at Veriff, highlights the alarming rise in these attacks, stating, “The rise in adversary-in-the-middle attacks is a very worrying trend. My thought here is that the security which protects identity verification and accounts from third-party abuse has become so good that the fraudsters are now looking towards the next weakest link in the chain, which is often the genuine identity holder, to perform the malicious act. Fortunately, Veriff is just as well equipped to fight these increasingly common adversary-in-the-middle attacks as we are with impersonation fraud.”

By leveraging its advanced technology and expertise, Veriff ensures that both systems and users are protected against this emerging threat. This dual-layered approach is critical in an era where attackers constantly evolve their methods to outpace traditional fraud prevention measures.

The rise in adversary-in-the-middle attacks is a very worrying trend. My thought here is that the security which protects identity verification and accounts from third-party abuse has become so good that the fraudsters are now looking towards the next weakest link in the chain, which is often the genuine identity holder, to perform the malicious act. Fortunately, Veriff is just as well equipped to fight these increasingly common adversary-in-the-middle attacks as we are with impersonation fraud.

Ira Bondar Fraud Platform Lead Veriff

Physical AiTM fraud on the rise

According to Veriff Identity Report, 2025, physical AiTM fraud has notably increased, from 0.98% in 2023 to 1.73% in 2024. Unsurprisingly, the iGaming sector experienced a significant surge during this period, driven by opportunities such as sign-up bonuses and rewards. Fraudsters leverage tactics like:

• Multi-accounting: Creating multiple accounts to exploit promotional offers.
• Identity farming: Using stolen or fabricated identities for fraudulent activities.
• Account takeovers: Gaining access to legitimate user accounts, often through coercion or collaboration with account holders.

In some cases, individuals are forced to grant access to their accounts or willingly participate in fraud schemes, further complicating detection and prevention efforts.

Digital AiTM fraud: A rare but growing threat

Digital AiTM fraud, while relatively rare (0.06% in 2024), is gaining traction due to advances in phishing techniques and AI-driven attacks. These schemes typically involve:

• Phishing emails: Crafted to trick users into sharing login credentials.
• AI-generated messages: Mimicking legitimate communication to deceive users.
• Malware: Intercepting communications between users and businesses to steal sensitive data or access accounts.

The goal of these attacks is often to exploit the trust between users and organizations, bypassing traditional security measures.

Identity Fraud Report 2025

Get the Identity Fraud Report 2025 and discover global data on consumer attitudes to fraud, risk, and digital identity.

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Regional characteristics: US & UK perspectives on AiTM fraud

US context:

In the US, adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) fraud increasingly targets high-value industries like financial services and e-commerce. The widespread adoption of online banking and digital payments has created a fertile ground for sophisticated phishing schemes and AI-driven attacks. Additionally, the lack of universal privacy regulations compared to the UK (e.g., GDPR) presents varied security landscapes across states, making it challenging for businesses to implement consistent defenses. Phishing-resistant MFA, robust behavior monitoring, and AI-driven fraud detection systems are critical for protecting US organizations, where the financial impact of fraud tends to be higher due to the scale of operations.

UK context:

In the UK, AiTM fraud has seen a rise, particularly in sectors like iGaming and fintech, where compliance with strict regulations such as the FCA and PSD2 is mandatory. Fraudsters often exploit promotional offers and rewards in the iGaming sector, leveraging identity farming and multi-accounting. The UK’s emphasis on strong customer authentication under PSD2 provides a framework for combating such threats, but businesses must also adopt advanced measures like biometric authentication and end-to-end encryption to ensure compliance and security. Awareness campaigns and customer education remain vital, as the UK population heavily relies on digital channels for financial transactions.

By addressing these region-specific characteristics, businesses can better tailor their strategies to counter AiTM fraud and safeguard their operations.

AiTM threats across Veriff´s key industries

Adversary-in-the-Middle (AiTM) attacks represent a sophisticated cybersecurity threat, impacting industries that rely on secure digital transactions and data privacy. These attacks are increasingly evident in sectors Veriff supports, including financial services, marketplaces, mobility/transportation, and online gaming, where the consequences can be severe—ranging from financial losses to compromised user trust.

Financial services fraud

AiTM attacks pose a significant risk to online banking and financial institutions. Cybercriminals intercept transactions, alter payment details, and redirect funds to fraudulent accounts, leading to massive financial losses. For businesses, this results in customer trust erosion and regulatory scrutiny.

E-commerce & marketplace manipulation

In marketplaces and gig platforms, AiTM attackers exploit vulnerabilities to intercept and modify transactions through data manipulation, redirecting payments to their accounts. This manipulation not only causes monetary losses, but also damages the reputation of platforms unable to secure their payment systems. In mobility/transportation sectors and beyond, AiTM techniques are often used to steal sensitive communications, intellectual property, or operational data. The extracted information may be used for industrial espionage or sold on the dark web, resulting in competitive disadvantages and privacy violations.

Mobility & transportation AiTM attacks

In the mobility and transportation sector, Adversary-in-the-Middle (AiTM) attacks pose a significant threat by intercepting communications between service providers and users. Attackers may manipulate payment systems, rerouting funds from ride-hailing apps, public transport systems, or vehicle rental services to their accounts. Additionally, these attacks can target vehicle telematics systems, intercept or alter data to compromise operational safety, track vehicle locations, or disrupt logistics operations. For transportation companies, this results in financial losses and jeopardizes customer trust and safety. Robust security measures are essential to safeguard sensitive data and maintain operational integrity in this increasingly digitized sector.

Gaming account takeovers

Online gaming platforms are prime targets for AiTM attackers for account takeover fraud, who compromise user accounts to exploit in-game purchases, rewards, or assets. These attacks undermine player trust and may lead to significant revenue losses for gaming companies.

How businesses can protect against AiTM fraud

Adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) attacks are stealthy and often undetectable by the targeted user, making preventive measures critical. Both users and application developers share responsibility for minimizing the risk of these attacks. Below are key strategies for safeguarding against AiTM attacks:

Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Use 2FA on email accounts to prevent attackers from successfully authenticating, even if they obtain your credentials. The additional authentication layer, like a PIN, remains inaccessible to the attacker.

Monitor network traffic

Utilize traffic analytical tools to identify suspicious activity. These tools provide insights into port and protocol usage across devices, helping administrators detect potential threats.

Implement certificate pinning

Developers can use certificate pinning in mobile apps to whitelist trusted certificates, blocking attacker-controlled ones. This proactive measure protects the application against tampered communications.

Use a VPN on public Wi-Fi

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) encrypt data, ensuring that intercepted information remains unreadable. VPNs also protect against weaker encryption protocols by employing their own algorithms.

Phishing awareness training

Educate employees to recognize phishing attempts, which are often precursors to AiTM attacks. Preventing employees from clicking malicious links or sharing credentials reduces the risk of malware installation.

Enhance email security

Employ email filters to quarantine phishing attempts and malicious attachments. This additional layer of protection helps administrators manage potential threats effectively.

Avoid unverified Wi-Fi hotspots

Always verify the legitimacy of public Wi-Fi networks. Malicious hotspots are often designed to mimic official sources and can expose users to interception risks.

By adopting these practices, individuals and organizations can significantly reduce their vulnerability to AiTM attacks, ensuring a safer digital environment.

How can Veriff help?

Veriff is uniquely equipped to combat adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) attacks by providing robust identity verification solutions that safeguard both users and systems.

Through advanced biometric authentication and dynamic fraud detection algorithms, Veriff ensures that even if attackers intercept data or credentials, they cannot impersonate a legitimate user. Veriff’s real-time monitoring capabilities and machine learning models identify unusual behaviors indicative of AiTM tactics, such as rapid session switching or irregular device activity. Additionally, Veriff empowers organizations to implement stronger verification workflows, like multi-factor authentication (MFA) integration, to add extra layers of security. By continuously innovating and adapting its technology to address emerging threats, Veriff provides businesses and individuals with the tools necessary to stay one step ahead of fraudsters, ensuring trust and security in every interaction.

Conclusion: Staying ahead of AiTM threats

As fraud continues to evolve, adversary-in-the-middle (AiTM) attacks are becoming a significant concern, particularly for industries like financial services, fintech, and iGaming. With a 46% increase in AiTM cases in just a year, these sophisticated threats exploit vulnerabilities in both digital and physical systems, posing challenges that traditional fraud detection measures struggle to address. While impersonation fraud remains the most prevalent type of attack, the rapid growth of AiTM fraud underscores the need for organizations to adapt their defenses.

To effectively combat this emerging threat, businesses must adopt a multi-layered approach, integrating advanced security technologies, rigorous user education, and compliance with region-specific regulations. Veriff’s cutting-edge identity verification solutions, including biometric authentication and machine learning-driven fraud detection, offer a proactive defense against AiTM tactics, ensuring that both users and organizations are protected. By staying ahead of the evolving fraud landscape, companies can safeguard their operations, maintain customer trust, and build resilience against future threats.

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