Suspected E-Commerce Fraud Attempt Rates Between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday Increase 25% Compared to the Rest of the Year

Rhea-AI Summary

TransUnion recently reported a significant increase in suspected e-commerce fraud during the 2021 holiday shopping season. The analysis revealed that 19.66% of U.S. e-commerce transactions from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday were potentially fraudulent, a slight decrease from last year’s 19.70%. Overall, there was a 25% increase in fraud attempts compared to earlier in the year. Factors contributing to this include the number of accounts per device and prior fraud evidence. Consumers are more concerned about digital fraud this year, with 25% expressing heightened concerns compared to last year.

Positive

• Increase of suspected e-commerce fraud attempts by 25% from earlier in the year.
• TransUnion's extensive fraud analytics solutions monitor billions of transactions, enhancing fraud detection.

Negative

• U.S. suspected fraud rate slightly decreased from 19.70% to 19.66%, showing no significant improvement.
• Overall global e-commerce transactions suspected fraudulent rose to 17.46%, indicating a broader concern.

TransUnion research finds one quarter of consumers are more concerned about becoming a victim of digital fraud this holiday season compared to last year

CHICAGO, Dec. 02, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) released new findings today around global e-commerce fraud trends that occurred during the busiest period of the 2021 holiday shopping season. The analysis found 17.46% of all global e-commerce transactions between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday were potentially fraudulent¹. Those numbers were slightly higher in the U.S. where 19.66% were suspected fraudulent.

The number of suspected e-commerce fraud attempts during the 2021 holiday shopping season was also a 25% increase over the 15.73% of fraud attempts observed earlier in the year (January 1 to November 29). Globally, the percentage of suspected fraudulent e-commerce transactions from November 25 to November 29 is about 4% higher than the same period last year when the rate was 16.83%. In the U.S. the percentage remained relatively flat compared to last year when it was 19.70% during the Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday holiday shopping period. These findings are based on intelligence from billions of transactions contained in TransUnion’s fraud analytics solution suite — TruValidate™.

The analysis also observed the top two reasons for potentially fraudulent e-commerce transactions between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. The top reason was the number of accounts per device – which triggers when a device has accessed the minimum number of accounts during the set time period. The second was evidence exists – which occurs when an account or device has previously had a fraudulent transaction.

E-Commerce Fraud Trends in the U.S. from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday Over the Years

Shopping Season by Year	Percentage of Suspected Fraud Attempts
November 25 – November 29, 2021	19.66%
November 26 – November 30, 2020	19.70%
November 28 – December 2, 2019	19.94%
November 22 – November 26, 2018	11.76%

“The holiday shopping season is a popular time for bad actors to engage in fraudulent activity, particularly in the e-commerce and retail industry,” said Shai Cohen, senior vice president of global fraud solutions at TransUnion. “Online shopping is the new norm for the majority of consumers and that trend has been further accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consumers want to shop with online retailers that not only provide a seamless user experience, but also take consumer security and privacy seriously. It is imperative that those businesses equip themselves with the proper tools to better assess the overall risk of a potential fraudulent transaction without inhibiting the consumer journey.”

Spike in fraud attempts occurs as more consumers concerned about holiday fraud

These trends and spike of fraudulent activity early in the shopping season, compared to the rest of the year, aligned with TransUnion’s recent Consumer Holiday Shopping Report. The report showed that 50% of consumers have a positive view of additional identity validation requirements at check-out, while 45% are neutral, saying the requirements don’t affect shopping habits. However, 15% say not having enough security on a site is their top reason for abandoning their cart. Additionally, one in four consumers cited they are more concerned about becoming a victim of digital fraud this holiday season compared to last year.

The report also found that in anticipation of supply chain issues and possible low inventory, 33% of consumers are shopping earlier this year. With consumers shopping earlier and conducting much of their shopping online, TransUnion’s analysis found that in the U.S., Saturday, November 27 was the day with the highest percent of suspected digital fraud attempts at 21.99%.

“Businesses now have more pressure to identify the device a consumer uses to conduct transactions so they may better assess the risk level while ensuring their customers are confident in engaging in those transactions,” said Ryan Fox, vice president of global fraud solutions at TransUnion. “As fraudsters continue to target consumers, it is table stakes for businesses to do all that they can to ensure their customers have an appropriate level of security to trust their transaction is safe all while avoiding shopping cart abandonment.”

TransUnion monitors digital fraud attempts reported by businesses in varied industries such as gambling, gaming, financial services, healthcare, insurance, retail, and travel and leisure, among others. The conclusions are based on intelligence from billions of transactions and more than 40,000 websites and apps contained in its flagship identity proofing, risk-based authentication and fraud analytics solution suite – TransUnion TruValidate™.

To find out how this data varies by select countries, how mobile is playing a large part in digital holiday fraud, what days during the holiday shopping season are most popular for fraud and more, TransUnion’s holiday fraud trends can be found here.

About TransUnion (NYSE: TRU)
TransUnion is a global information and insights company that makes trust possible in the modern economy. We do this by providing an actionable picture of each person so they can be reliably represented in the marketplace. As a result, businesses and consumers can transact with confidence and achieve great things. We call this Information for Good®.

A leading presence in more than 30 countries across five continents, TransUnion provides solutions that help create economic opportunity, great experiences and personal empowerment for hundreds of millions of people.

http://www.transunion.com/business

Contact	Dave Blumberg
	TransUnion
E-mail	dblumberg@transunion.com
Telephone	312-972-6646

¹ The percent of suspected digital fraud attempts are those that TruValidate customers either denied or reviewed due to fraudulent indicators compared to all transactions it assessed for fraud.

FAQ

What percentage of e-commerce transactions was suspected fraudulent during Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday 2021?

19.66% of U.S. e-commerce transactions were suspected fraudulent during this period.

How does the suspected fraud rate from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday 2021 compare to 2020?

The suspected fraud rate in 2021 was 19.66%, slightly lower than the 19.70% observed in 2020.

What increase in suspected fraud attempts did TransUnion observe compared to earlier in the year?

TransUnion reported a 25% increase in suspected fraud attempts compared to earlier in 2021.

What are the main reasons for suspected e-commerce fraud as per TransUnion's analysis?

The top reasons include the number of accounts per device and previous evidence of fraud.

How concerned are consumers about digital fraud this holiday season according to TransUnion?

One in four consumers reported being more concerned about becoming a victim of digital fraud this holiday season compared to last year.