- Visa (NYSE:V) identified nearly US$1B in scam-related activity (July–Dec 2025), making scams the largest source of consumer payment fraud as criminals exploit human behaviour instead of systems
- Stronger payment security is reducing technical fraud, but attackers are increasingly using social engineering and impersonation to trick people into authorizing transactions
- Criminals use AI to scale more convincing scams, while defenders deploy AI to detect fraud earlier; meanwhile, ransomware attacks rose but fewer victims are paying
- Visa stock (NYSE:V) opened trading at US$329.68
Scams have emerged as the fastest-growing source of consumer harm in the global payments ecosystem, according to Visa’s (NYSE:V) Spring 2026 Biannual Threats Report. Drawing on intelligence from its worldwide network, the report highlights a significant shift in the fraud landscape: while technical defences around payment systems are becoming more effective, criminals are increasingly targeting human behaviour rather than infrastructure.
The report reveals that between July and December 2025, Visa identified nearly US$1 billion in scam-related activity, making scams the single largest category of consumer payment fraud during the period. Unlike traditional fraud schemes that rely on breaching systems or stealing credentials, these scams depend on social engineering tactics—manipulating individuals into willingly authorizing payments that appear legitimate.
According to Visa, scammers are leveraging impersonation and urgency to deceive consumers, often posing as trusted brands, financial institutions, or even government agencies. Victims are pressured into making quick decisions, frequently without realizing they are being exploited until after the transaction has been completed.
This article is a journalistic opinion piece that has been written based on independent research. It is intended to inform investors and should not be taken as a recommendation or financial advice.
Shift away from technical attacks
The findings underscore what Visa describes as a “critical evolution” in fraud tactics. Core payment security infrastructure—such as tokenization, authentication protocols, and transaction monitoring—continues to strengthen across the network. However, as these defenses improve, bad actors are redirecting their efforts away from exploiting system vulnerabilities and toward exploiting consumer trust.
“Security at the network level is becoming increasingly robust,” the report suggests, “but attackers are adapting by focusing on the weakest link: human decision-making.”
This evolution reflects a broader trend across cybersecurity, where social engineering attacks have become more scalable and harder to detect, particularly as technology lowers the barrier to entry for criminals.
Four key trends reshaping payment security
Visa’s report outlines four major trends currently influencing the global payment threat landscape:
1. Security Is working, but fraud is migrating
Fraud involving device tokens—a method often used to secure digital payments—declined 9.6 per cent in the second half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. This drop indicates that stronger authentication measures and network protections are having a measurable impact. However, Visa notes that overall attack volumes continue to increase, suggesting fraud is shifting toward less technically demanding methods.
2. Scams are accelerating
Scams have now become the dominant consumer payment threat, overtaking more traditional forms of fraud. Instead of hacking systems, criminals are focusing on convincing individuals to initiate transactions themselves. This trend has been fueled by the ability to craft increasingly believable narratives and impersonations.
3. Artificial intelligence is transforming fraud dynamics
The report emphasizes that artificial intelligence is reshaping fraud on both sides of the equation. Fraudsters are using AI tools to generate more convincing messages, automate outreach, and scale operations efficiently. These tools enable more personalized and realistic interactions, making scams harder to identify.
At the same time, financial institutions and payment networks are deploying AI-driven defenses to detect anomalies and flag suspicious behavior earlier in the transaction lifecycle. Visa highlights that this “arms race” between attackers and defenders is likely to intensify.
4. Ransomware economics are shifting
Beyond payment scams, the report also identifies changes in ransomware behavior. Global ransomware activity rose 26 per cent during the same six-month period, yet only 23 per cent of victims paid ransoms, marking the lowest payment rate on record. Visa attributes this decline to improved resilience, better recovery capabilities, and growing awareness that payment does not guarantee data protection.
Organizations are increasingly reluctant to pay attackers, especially given the risk that stolen data may still be leaked regardless of payment.
Growing need for consumer awareness
The rise in scams places greater emphasis on consumer awareness and education as essential components of fraud prevention. Since many of these transactions are technically authorized by the victim, they can be more difficult to reverse or dispute compared to unauthorized fraud.
Visa’s findings suggest that combating this trend will require coordinated efforts between financial institutions, technology companies, and consumers themselves. This includes improving communication about scam tactics, investing in real-time detection tools, and strengthening safeguards that can intervene before a payment is completed.
Charge it
“Payments at a network level continue to get safer, but threats are evolving faster than ever,” Paul Fabara, Chief Risk and Client Services Officer at Visa said in a news release. “Criminals are increasingly targeting people rather than technology, using deception, urgency and AI-enabled tools to exploit trust. Addressing this shift requires continuous innovation at the network level and close collaboration across banks, merchants, policymakers and the broader payments ecosystem.”
As digital payments continue to expand globally, Visa’s report indicates that fraud prevention strategies must evolve beyond technology alone. While system-level defences are proving effective, the human element is becoming the primary battleground.
Even Canadians have lost millions to AI-enabled deepfake cryptocurrency investment schemes.
The shift toward scams driven by social engineering and AI reflects a broader transformation in cybercrime—one that prioritizes manipulation over intrusion. According to Visa, addressing this challenge will be critical to maintaining trust in the payments ecosystem in the years ahead.
Visa stock (NYSE:V) opened trading at US$329.68 and has lost more than 8 per cent since this time last year.
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