Gambling tops fraud attempts list on Black Friday

Jumio has said that the gambling industry experienced the highest levels of fraud between Black Friday and Cyber Monday compared to other sectors.

Despite overall fraud attempts falling 4% on the same period last year, gambling saw its highest-ever level, with Jumio reporting that fraud was 67% higher than the daily average for the rest of the year in Europe.

Online gambling fraud has now increased 60% overall since 2014, according to Jumio.

Other sectors such as retail, financial services, travel, sharing economy services and insurance collectively saw a 25% year-on-year decrease in detectable fraud in the period.

The busy shopping weekend, which this year ran from November 24-27, has become an annual tradition as thousands of retailers cut prices on products ahead of the Christmas rush, with millions spent during the period worldwide.

Last week, Jumio issued a warning to online gaming operators to be aware of the increased risk of fraud over the period.

Anies Khan, head of gaming at Jumio, said: ‘’While we saw an overall reduction in detectable fraud between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, online gambling saw significant increases during the account setup process.

“Online gaming operators are often reluctant to add extra barriers to the customer onboarding process because they want a seamless user experience.

“This year’s data suggests that this mindset may require rethinking since its leaving operators vulnerable to attacks.

“Operators must consider deploying more robust identity verification solutions that enable a swift user experience, but also provide an effective fraud deterrent.”

For this analysis, Jumio compared fraud patterns from 2014 to 2017 for online ID verifications across a range of industries for the week between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, including the day before and after each event.

Common multi-layered identity verification techniques include biometric facial recognition via a live selfie or video of the customer

Results were then compared with average fraud rates from the rest of the year to discern significant spikes in the online gambling sector.

Related article: Jumio warns of Black Friday fraud attacks