Surge of online gambling fraud pushing industry towards identity verification: Report

TransUnion, Sumsub and GeoComply are the leading fraud prevention companies in the global gambling sector, according to a new report from Gambling IQ, a UK-based industry intelligence firm.

The trio has contributed to ensuring that the fraud-riddled online gambling industry is safer by implementing products such as digital identity verification solutions, risk intelligence and real-time fraud detection. The companies are also working to ensure compliance in often complex regulatory environments.

Aside from recognizing successful companies in the field, the Gambling IQ report also delves into the details of fraud prevention in an increasingly complex online sector.

The gambling industry is expected to grow from US$540 billion in 2023 to US$744.8 billion in 2028. But the rise of the industry has been followed by fraud problems which cost the sector around US$1 billion per year. Fraud rates have surged 73 percent from 2022 to November 2024, according to the report.

While the industry has been introducing technical advances, fraudsters have advanced their scams, including deepfakes, cryptocurrency-related fraud, money laundering, account manipulation and bonus abuse.

Bonus abuse involves previously registered players signing up to a gambling platform to take advantage of a promotion aimed at new players. The fraud is performed by opening multiple accounts or utilizing fake identities. It has become one of the most common scams in the industry, making up nearly 66 percent of online casino fraud, according to the report. Another threat has been affiliate fraud in which affiliates use bots to generate fake traffic or unauthorized clicks.

In the UK, gambling businesses are dealing with first-party gambling chargeback fraud in which players falsely claim back money from lost bets. According to counter-fraud service Cifas, the public’s response towards such fraud has been a troubling normalization: A survey of 2,000 UK residents revealed that 15 percent of respondents mistakenly believe lying to their bank to reverse gambling losses is legal.

AI has become essential for real-time fraud detection, allowing iGambling platforms to scan for behavioral anomalies and authenticate users through biometrics. Risky activity is identified with tools such as device fingerprinting and multi-factor authentication (MFA). Deepfake technology has also pushed the industry towards identity verification, the report notes.

Article Topics

biometric authentication  |  biometrics  |  digital ID  |  digital identity  |  fraud prevention  |  gambling  |  Gambling IQ  |  identity verification