Sumsub, a full-cycle verification platform, warns that APAC has entered a brand new part of industrialised fraud pushed by artificial information, AI instruments and the rising professionalisation of fraud-as-a-service networks.
The fifth annual Identification Fraud Report 2025–2026 by Sumsub describes a worldwide “Sophistication Shift”, the place total fraud volumes are stabilising however high-quality assaults have risen 180 % 12 months on 12 months.
In APAC, artificial private information fraud jumped 142 % and now makes up 15.7 % of all regional fraud makes an attempt, the area’s third-largest class.
The report attracts on hundreds of thousands of verification checks and greater than 4 million fraud makes an attempt, supported by responses from over 300 threat professionals and 1,200 finish customers.
APAC Turns into a Testing Floor for Superior Fraud Strategies
More durable enforcement is altering how fraud is dealt with within the area.
Sixty % of firms reported instances to police, greater than double Europe’s 29 %.
Elevated reporting has uncovered intensive prison networks, and one in 4 people has been focused for mule recruitment, one of many highest charges globally.
Hong Kong’s fraud charge fell to 1.4 % after a 43 % annual decline, under the worldwide common of two.2 %, but deepfake instances rose 147 %.
Throughout APAC, the quickest deepfake development charges have been recorded within the Maldives at 2,100%, Malaysia at 408%, Mongolia at 200%, Thailand at 199%, Sri Lanka at 194%, Singapore at 158%, Kyrgyzstan at 155%, Hong Kong at 147%, Kazakhstan at 140% and Taiwan at 139%.
In 2025, 69 % of companies and 53 % of customers reported falling sufferer to fraud.
Survey outcomes present that 47 % of customers consider safety must be shared equally between firms and governments.
Fraud trajectories stay uneven. Malaysia and Pakistan are seeing speedy will increase tied to rising digital adoption.
Indonesia and the Philippines stay high-risk markets with rising exploitation of digital platforms and deepfake-enabled schemes.
Hong Kong, Singapore, India and Australia have recorded declines supported by stronger regulation, though assaults in these jurisdictions have gotten extra refined.
The report identifies new assault strategies involving manipulation of the infrastructure behind verification.
Telemetry tampering is rising as fraudsters intrude with SDKs, APIs and gadget indicators to bypass checks.
Sumsub additionally notes the emergence of AI fraud brokers able to automating full verification flows, producing artificial paperwork, submitting deepfake movies and mimicking person behaviour.
These programs are anticipated to speed up additional in 2026.
The findings level to the necessity for steady, multi-layered verification programs that analyse gadget patterns, contextual indicators and non-human exercise in actual time.
Sumsub says organisations should shift from static checks to adaptive programs that evolve as threats change.
“The fraud panorama in APAC has modified sooner previously twelve months than within the earlier 5 years mixed.
In 2025, we noticed fraud charges decline throughout mature economies, together with Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea — but deepfakes and artificial identities are rising sooner than anyplace else on this planet. This shift signifies that the area’s success in combating primary scams has prompted attackers to adapt their techniques.”
stated Penny Chai, Vice President, APAC at Sumsub.
Featured picture: Edited by Fintech Information Singapore, primarily based on picture by Freepik
