Checks remain the payment method most susceptible to
fraud, according to 65% of survey respondents.
ROCKVILLE, Md.,
April 16,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Eighty percent of
respondents report that their organizations were victims of
attempted or actual payments fraud activity in 2023,
according to the 2024 AFP Payments Fraud and
Control Survey, underwritten by Truist.
This number reflects a 15-percentage point increase in payments
fraud over 2022 and the highest rate reported since
2018. With heightened awareness and increased preventative controls
and processes in place, the increase is not a result of a passive
mindset among organizations but rather relentless attempts
by fraudsters.
Checks continue to be the payment method most vulnerable to
fraud, with 65% of respondents reporting their
organizations faced fraud attacks of this type.
Despite the high rate at which checks are a frequent target of
payments fraud, 70% of organizations currently using
checks do not plan to discontinue their use of checks within the
next two years.
Over 20% of respondents report fraud due to
interference with the United States Postal Service (USPS), which is
10 percentage points higher than the share reported for 2022.
Despite alerts from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
(FinCEN) regarding increased fraud attempts via mail
interception, over 80% of respondents indicate their organizations
still deliver checks via the United States Postal Service (USPS) —
without tracking.
Other key findings from the 2024 AFP Payments Fraud
and Control Survey include:
- For the first time in the history of this survey, ACH
credits surpassed wires as the most vulnerable payment type for BEC
fraud. Even as most payment methods continue to be
vulnerable to BEC, payments made via ACH credits (47%), wire
transfers (39%) and ACH debits (20%) were most often targeted.
- In 2023, the most common source of
payments fraud was an external source or
individual (e.g., forged check, stolen card, corporate synthetic
identity fraud). Sixty-five percent of financial
professionals report that payments fraud at their
companies was the result of actions by an individual outside the
organization.
- Thirty percent of respondents were unsuccessful in recovering
funds lost to fraud. Meanwhile, 29% managed to regain
up to three-fourths of lost funds, and 41% successfully recouped
over three-fourths of lost funds, the bulk of which were lost due
to check fraud.
"Financial professionals are steadfastly committed to combatting
payments fraud," said Jim
Kaitz, President and CEO of AFP. "However, fraudsters are
leveraging increasingly sophisticated tools, and to overcome this
challenge, organizations must prioritize awareness, training, and
the review and implementation of stringent policies and procedures
to mitigate the risk and impact of payments fraud
effectively."
"These findings underscore the relentless evolution of payments
fraud," said Chris
Ward, Head of Enterprise Payments at Truist. "In addition to
providing awareness and training, Truist is committed to delivering
solutions that help businesses manage their payments with
simplicity, speed and safety. These efforts help clients understand
and outpace evolving fraud techniques, empowering them
to proactively protect their financial assets with confidence."
The 2024 AFP Payments Fraud and Control Survey was
conducted in January 2024 and
received responses from 522 corporate practitioners representing
organizations of varying sizes and a broad range of industries. The
results from the survey reflect data for 2023.
Full survey results are available on the 2024 AFP Payments
Fraud and Control Survey page. Please direct all
press inquiries to Melissa Rawak,
Managing Director, at mrawak@afponline.org.
About AFP®
Headquartered outside of Washington,
D.C., and located regionally in Singapore, the Association for Financial
Professionals (AFP) is the professional society committed to
advancing the success of treasury and finance members and their
organizations. Established and administered by AFP, the Certified
Treasury Professional and Certified Corporate FP&A Professional
credentials set standards of excellence in treasury and finance.
Each year, AFP hosts the largest networking conference worldwide
for about 6,000 corporate financial professionals.
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SOURCE Association for Financial Professionals