Whereas digital ecosystems throughout Asia Pacific (APAC) proceed to take pleasure in speedy progress, among the fastest-growing sectors have gotten prime targets for more and more refined fraud, based on new findings from international verification supplier Sumsub.
Healthtech and fintech look like the sectors in APAC most uncovered to a brand new wave of AI-powered fraud, Sumsub has revealed. In reality, healthtech recorded the sharpest year-on-year spike throughout industries within the area – an alarming 723 per cent in comparison with Q1 2024.
In fintech, fraud stays persistent with the second-highest year-on-year rise in fraud in APAC, with a 116 per cent improve over the identical interval. This surge in fraud comes as each sectors expertise speedy progress. Fintech in APAC is predicted to greater than double from $450 billion in 2024, to $1.15trillion by 2032, whereas digital well being is predicted to develop eightfold by 2033, reaching almost $488.5billion.
However as these industries scale, so too is the sophistication of the fraud they face, says Sumsub. Fuelled by generative AI, artificial id paperwork, and deepfakes, AI-driven techniques are rapidly changing into the largest problem dealing with these sectors.
The usage of deepfakes is especially regarding, extending past election interference and enterprise impersonation to AI-generated job scams. Singapore recorded a staggering 1,500 per cent surge in deepfake fraud instances from 2024, whereas Hong Kong noticed an much more dramatic 1,900 per cent soar.
As AI turns into extra accessible, fraudsters are utilizing AI-powered instruments to assemble artificial id paperwork, combining actual knowledge like a legitimate ID quantity with fictitious particulars to create a totally new, non-existent persona. In sectors like fintech and healthtech, the place digital onboarding and distant verification are frequent, these AI-generated paperwork are sometimes used to impersonate reputable customers throughout Know Your Buyer (KYC) checks. This permits unhealthy actors to fraudulently entry monetary companies or delicate well being information, posing severe dangers to each service suppliers and finish customers.
Time for companies to adapt
Globally, artificial id doc fraud instances have surged by 195 per cent, with APAC seeing an excellent sharper rise of 233 per cent, underscoring the dimensions and class of the risk. A number of APAC markets have recorded a pointy year-on-year rise in artificial id doc fraud (Q1 2024 to Q1 2025), with notably steep will increase in:
- The Philippines (291 per cent improve)
- Hong Kong (209 per cent)
- Thailand (188 per cent)
- Singapore (184 per cent)
- Australia (117 per cent)
Sumsub’s APAC vp, Penny Chai, mentioned the findings: “Whereas fintech fraud is a well-recognized battleground, given the sector’s long-standing publicity to monetary crime and its evolution alongside crypto, the dimensions of fraud in healthtech alerts a worrying new frontier.
“As extra healthcare companies go digital, the sector’s vulnerabilities are being exploited at tempo, placing belief within the digital well being system at severe danger. The surges in AI-powered fraud, together with deepfakes and artificial id paperwork, are exposing vital flaws in conventional verification methods.
“To guard themselves, companies should transfer past outdated approaches and undertake multi-layered, adaptive defences. At Sumsub, our focus is on serving to companies keep one step forward of fraudsters by anticipating new assault vectors and delivering smarter, extra resilient full-cycle verification options.”
