Cifas analysis shows UK needs better detection for record identity fraud

Identity fraud continues to increase rapidly, and accounted for nearly three in five reported risk cases in the UK during the first six months of 2026, according to Cifas analysis of National Fraud Database figures. It is increasingly digital, it increasingly involves money mules, and younger adults are filing more reports.

Out of more than 220,000 fraud risk cases recorded, the highest total ever reported for the January to June period, identity fraud accounted for 59 percent. A 9 percent increase brought the first half identity fraud total close to 130,000 cases.

Bank accounts and plastic cards were the primary targets.

People aged 61 and over remained the largest group affected by identity fraud. However, the sharpest increase was among people aged 21 to 30, with cases rising by 32 percent compared with the same period in 2025.

Cifas says the increase shows younger consumers’ growing exposure to fraud through online and social media channels.

The organization also identified concerns around fraudulent identities, AI-enabled impersonation, and manipulated documents. The report did not specify how many recorded cases involved those techniques.

“Whether it is used to open accounts, take over existing facilities or support wider criminal activity, stolen personal data often provides the entry point,” says Cifas CEO Mike Haley in the organization’s announcement.

The figures also show that identity risk continues after an account has been opened and the customer has completed the initial identity verification.

Money-muling cases increased by 69 percent compared with the first half of 2025, with more than 13,000 recorded. Mule activity represented 30 percent of all misuse-of-facility cases.

“Money mules no longer restrict themselves to current accounts; the sheer number of products criminals are utilizing to launder money reflects the need for them to innovate in response to improved detection in current and savings accounts,” says Jonathan Frost, director of Global Advisory for EMEA at BioCatch in comments emailed to Biometric Update.

BioCatch not only serves a large customer base of financial services companies, but is on track to be acquired by Visa under a $2.4 billion deal announced earlier this week.

“The triple-digit growth in the use of credit card accounts by mules and the 67 percent increase in the use of business accounts demonstrates the need to shift from detecting risk in individual products to detecting mules in digital banking channels,” he continues.

Cifas also recorded a 402 percent year-over-year increase in unauthorized SIM-swap cases. In these cases, security codes are sent by text message that can be intercepted and used to bypass account protections.

“Identity theft, phishing, account takeover, stolen devices and SIM swaps are increasingly feeding into one another,” Frost says.

The Cifas findings show that identity fraud controls cannot be concentrated only at account opening. Organizations need to manage identity risk across enrollment, authentication, and the period after a customer has been verified.

“The issues highlighted by Cifas’s members call for banks to use continuous behavioral intelligence, enabling them to intervene with sufficient precision to stop fraud without frustrating genuine customers,” Frost adds.

The report shows the need for a layered approach to identity validation that combines initial verification and post-onboarding signals that can identify changes in devices, behavior, and account control.

Article Topics

BioCatch  |  Cifas  |  digital identity  |  fraud prevention  |  money laundering  |  UK