Brazil’s Fintech Success and the Cybercrime Wave: A Troubling Turn of Events
Brazil, a global leader in digital banking adoption, has seen a surge in fintech adoption and instant payments. However, this digital bonanza has also opened the floodgates for financial cybercrime. In this article, we explore how Brazil has become the haven for banking trojans, according to recent data from cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab.
Fintech Adoption in Brazil: A Digital Bonanza
- In 2017, over forty percent of Brazilians were regular online banking users, a figure among the highest worldwide (EY, 2017).
- By 2020, 44% of Brazilian customers had digital-only accounts, compared to less than twenty percent in the US and Canada (Accenture, 2020).
- In the same year, the central bank launched Pix, an instant payments platform, which today processes an astounding 3 billion transactions monthly - five times more than debit and credit card transactions combined.
The Dark Side of Digital Banking: Banking Trojans
- Cybercriminals have been drawn by the wealth of opportunities in Brazil’s digital banking landscape.
- They have turned to the use of ‘banking trojans,’ malicious software designed to pilfer users’ account information.
- The latest statistics from Kaspersky Lab indicate that Brazil is ground zero for banking trojan attacks, with a staggering 1.8 million attempted infections recorded between June 2022 and July 2023.
- Eight of the thirteen most prevalent types of trojans worldwide originate in Brazil.
The Escalating Battle Against Cybercrime
- As Brazil fortifies its position as a leading fintech hub, it faces an escalating battle against cybercrime.
- The stakes are high, and the race is on to protect users from the twin threats of convenience and insecurity.
Exploring the Edition
This article originally appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Hacker heaven.” For more stories from this section and more, explore the edition.