The digital age has brought immense convenience. With a few taps on our phones, we can purchase goods, transfer money, and access services. But where there are transactions, there are also those looking to game the system. As a result, digital fraud has exploded as more of our financial lives move online.
And there’s a particularly insidious type of fraud that’s expected to rise significantly in 2023-2024: synthetic identity fraud. This is when cunning fraudsters don’t just steal your identity – they build entirely new fake identities using real people’s information. Once they have these “synthetic” identities, they can open fraudulent accounts and make purchases under a name that passes all the checks.