Online scamsbecame the realsilent enemy duringthe high seasons in retail. Throughout Black Friday 2024, that marked the beginning of the year-end shopping, while consumers took advantage of irresistible promotions, the fraudsters also took advantage of the shopping wave to attack with more intensity and sophistication. According to data from theSignifyd, anti-fraud company for e-commerce, categories such asluxury, beautyandfashionrecorded increasesimportantin attempts of fraud
The beauty sector has seen a 43% increase in fraud attempts over the past year.Cyber Weekend(friday, Saturday and Sunday, in comparison with last year. Infashion, the volume of frauds increased on Friday,but decreased in the following days. Already in the luxury sector,the increase in fraud attempts reached peaks of 3.5x compared to the previous year during Black Week.
And what does this mean for e-commerce? First, that thefraudstersthey take advantage of the moments of increased sales volume in e-commerce so that fraud goes unnoticed. Second, they also take advantage of discounts to gain even more benefits by committing fraud and, third, but perhaps more importantly, they invest in and diversify their tools to commit fraud increasinglyfaster and more efficientFor the retailer, this means that the race to identify and block these frauds has never been more urgent
Failing to look at rising fraud is costly
The focus of preparation for the peak sales seasons, like the end of year one, starts months before, and it is an opportunity to maximize sales. However, a mistake that can be costly is forgetting that these periods also serve asfertile ground for fraudsters, they know that the shopping frenzy can create better opportunities to commit fraud
The numbers observed on Black Friday become valuable information for retailers throughout the entire year, but take on more significant proportions during sales peaks. For example, luxury, beautyandfashionthese were the most targeted categories during Black Friday 2024, just because of thehigh value of products and their ease of resale.
Without a proactive fraud prevention strategy, supported by tools as agile as current fraud schemes and protection guarantees, the increase in sales at the end of the year can also translate into a significant increase in the losses caused by fraud, not only through the costs of chargebacks, but also the administrative costs to handle the disputes and the fees involved in these processes.
The solution lies in quick intelligence: preventing before losing
As fraud networks are evolving with sophisticated tactics and resources to operate more quickly, the protection tools need to be equally agile and intelligent. Third-generation anti-fraud solutions have led a change in the market withprevention technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learningthat not only identifies fraudulent patterns, but also anticipates threats before they cause harm
Attempts at fraud throughout the entire high sales season show increasingly faster schemes, organized and audacious. Periods of high activity in e-commerce are especially targeted by fraudsters due to the significant increase in transaction volume. "The secret to maintaining profitability is to adopt a proactive and instant anti-fraud approach", Gabriel Vecchia states, commercial director of Signifyd, company that offers a third-generation anti-fraud solution
Fraudsters don't sleep
While brands focus on increasing their sales, the fraudsters areready to attack. What differentiates businesses that succeed in combating fraud from those that face significant losses is the ability toreact quickly, constantly evolve and ensure revenue protection.
E-commerce cannot delay or hesitate in identifying frauds; shouldn't bear this responsibility alone. The proper use of technology not only provides the ability to block fraudulent attempts in real time, but also to ensure that the losses caused by fraud do not affect the financial health of the e-commerce; in the third generation of anti-fraud solutions, "this becomes the provider's responsibility", complete Old.
In front of thepeaks in fraudulent attempts in segments with high average ticketsduring the year-end sales, Signifyd reaffirms the importance ofartificial intelligenceas a vital tool for e-commerce to protect their operations against fraud and the losses it can cause.
"Trying to commit fraud during shopping seasons like Christmas is like fishing in a full tank" – and the fraudsters know this. Our mission is to ensure that online commerce continues to grow, taking advantage of all opportunities to sell more, with the peace of mind of having guaranteed protection, who is effectively held responsible for the fraud – what is only possible with the massive use of advanced technology, concludes Vecchia
