Fraud losses are mounting across the U.S. as artificial intelligence fuels more sophisticated scams.
Experian’s latest Identity and Fraud Report shows that nearly 60% of companies are reporting higher year-over-year fraud losses.
The global data and technology company notes that identity theft, transactional payment fraud, account takeover, peer-to-peer payment scams and first-party fraud are the top fraud events witnessed in the last 12 months.
Kathleen Peters, Chief Innovation Officer at Experian North America, says the pace of digital crime is overwhelming defenses.
“With the widespread use of generative AI, fraud is evolving faster than many businesses can keep up with.”
The study shows the wave of attacks is hitting consumers just as hard. The Federal Trade Commission says Americans lost $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, a 25% jump from the prior year.
Experian also notes that 57% of consumers are concerned about their online activities, with their top fears including identity theft, stolen credit card data, phishing emails, phone scams and misinformation.
To combat threat actors, Experian says nearly 70% of firms report they are boosting fraud-prevention budgets. Half are adopting new analytics and building AI models to improve customer decision-making.
The report highlights a widening gap between corporate defenses and consumer expectations. While businesses continue to lean on passwords and PINs, consumers say they feel safer with biometric checks and behavioral analytics, tools that remain underused.
The firm warns that by 2026, deepfakes and other AI-generated schemes are expected to become a top challenge for companies worldwide.