Credit Card Fraud Prevention Measures in Italy: Cases Surge by 31.1% Amid Pandemic Recovery

A recent report by the CRIF Credit Fraud and Identity Theft Observatory has revealed a significant increase in credit card fraud cases in Italy, with over 28,600 incidents detected in the past year, representing a 31.1% rise compared to 2020.

Fraudulent Activities on the Rise

The estimated damage amounts to €124.6 million, although the average amount defrauded has decreased by 23.3% to €4,350. According to Beatrice Rubini, Executive Director of the CRIF Mister Credit line, credit fraud perpetrated through identity theft is constantly evolving, with criminal organizations using increasingly sophisticated techniques that individual consumers often cannot detect.

Types of Fraudulent Activities

E-commerce purchases: The majority of fraud cases involve requests for finance or payment in installments on e-commerce purchases, with a significant increase in cases for amounts below €1,500.
Retail finance: Retail finance for the purchase of goods and services remains the most affected type of finance, accounting for 34.4% of all fraud cases.

Key Statistics

52% of all cases detected in 2021 involved requests for finance or payment in installments on e-commerce purchases (up from 40% in 2020).
Cases involving amounts between €5,000 and €10,000 saw an increase, rising to 14% of total cases.
Men account for 63.5% of victims.

Digital Identity Protection

Analysis of the alerts on ID documents reveals that over 80% of identity cards presented during the identification phase were genuine, while around 4% of driving licenses presented were either counterfeit or did not belong to the subject. The report highlights the importance of adequate digital identity protection and the need for consumers to be vigilant in protecting their personal data.

Detection Time

The time taken to detect fraud has decreased, with 42.4% of cases being discovered within the first six months. Fabrizio Arboresi, CRIF Senior Director, emphasized the role of financial players in addressing identification issues during the creditworthiness assessment phase and the importance of anti-fraud controls in other areas, such as customer onboarding and digital payment system protection.

Prevention Measures

To protect their digital identity, consumers must be proactive by:

Activating alert notifications for credit card transactions
Promptly notifying them if their personal data is being used to request a loan or if it is illegally circulating on the web.