OrboGraph

05/11/2025

Just two years ago, stolen checks were selling on dark web and Telegram markets at around $150 for personal checks and $250 for business checks.

But, as David Maimon recently highlighted, those same checks are now going for as little as $15, or even less when purchased in bulk.

At first glance, that drop might sound like progress. However, it may point towards a growing problem: Mail theft.

Frank Albergo of the Postal Police Officers Association notes that stolen checks are being taken in massive quantities, flooding the market and turning check fraud into an everyday, large-scale operation.

Others, like Featurespace’s Majid Malek, suggest improved fraud detection tools could be lowering fraudsters’ success rates, and therefore demand.

So, is the falling price a sign of better defenses or simply a reflection of a market saturated with stolen checks?

04/11/2025

Is 90% of check fraud being caught across the banking industry too high of an estimate?

Unfortunately, the data behind it isn’t so clear.

​​​​​​​Can one statistic really represent every bank, every branch, and every region?

Our latest blog takes a closer look at what’s actually happening beneath that figure. Check fraud started to spike around 2017–2018, and since then, detection results have varied dramatically, with factors such as location and number of attempts creating the “urgency” for adoption of advanced fraud technologies.

Discover what the 90% figure really means – and how some banks are already surpassing it – in today’s blog post.

Check fraud attempts remain high Claims of 90% check fraud detection rates across the industry are likely too high Technologies like pattern recognition and machine learning significantly reduce check fraud Check fraud continues to make headlines, but the true impact-and the relative effectiveness o...

29/10/2025

In the recent Milwaukee Business Journal’s Table of Experts, leaders from banking, manufacturing, and commerce shared how businesses can better protect themselves. Lyneen Fischer, VP of Security at North Shore Bank, noted that while check volume has dropped, the value of each check has nearly doubled — making them prime targets for fraudsters.

From Positive Pay with payee match to the dual-sided role of AI, the conversation revealed just how much the fight against check fraud has evolved.

The “Table of Experts” discussion provided expert insights on how business can protect themself from growing check fraud threats.

22/10/2025

Gen Z might be the most tech-savvy generation, but they’re also becoming the most financially vulnerable.

According to Barclays’ latest Scams Bulletin:

-35% of Gen Z would move money for someone they don’t know
-71% aren’t aware they could face criminal charges for mule activity
-48% have been targeted by a job scam or know someone who has
-63% of job scams involve paper checks

As scammers use social media and messaging apps to appear more credible, Gen Z’s financial inexperience makes them easy targets.

Even in a digital-first world, paper checks continue to fuel scams, and catching them early means combining education, awareness, and AI-powered detection.

What do you think: Should financial institutions be doing more to educate younger consumers, or does the real solution start with better technology?

Read the full blog for a closer look at how scammers are exploiting financial inexperience

Gen Z is becoming recognized as a prime fraud target A quarter of Gen Z fraud victims do not report incidents Financial institutions have stepped up educating their customers WebWire’s report on the latest Barclays Scams Bulletin has revealed a worrisome trend among Gen Z: A striking 35% of young ...

22/10/2025

Gen Z might be the most tech-savvy generation, but they’re also becoming the most financially vulnerable.

According to Barclays’ latest Scams Bulletin:

-35% of Gen Z would move money for someone they don’t know
-71% aren’t aware they could face criminal charges for mule activity
-48% have been targeted by a job scam or know someone who has
-63% of job scams involve paper checks

As scammers use social media and messaging apps to appear more credible, Gen Z’s financial inexperience makes them easy targets.

Even in a digital-first world, paper checks continue to fuel scams, and catching them early means combining education, awareness, and AI-powered detection.

What do you think: Should financial institutions be doing more to educate younger consumers, or does the real solution start with better technology?

Read the full blog for a closer look at how scammers are exploiting financial inexperience

https://orbograph.com/barclays-report-35-of-gen-z-unintentionally-become-money-mules/?utm_source=social+media&utm_medium=linkedin&utm_campaign=Gen+Z+Mules&utm_id=fraudblog

21/10/2025

What happens when every type of fraud begins to feed the next?

In 2025, financial crime in America has become an ecosystem wherein a stolen check can spark an identity theft case, which leads to a bank account takeover, which ends in a full-scale scam.

According to Dr. David Maimon’s analysis of FinCEN data, reports of check fraud, account takeovers, and identity theft have surged to record levels. But what’s even more concerning is how these crimes now overlap, creating a cycle that’s harder than ever to break.

For financial institutions, fighting fraud in isolation is no longer enough. The shift toward a FRAML (Fraud + AML) approach is giving banks a wider lens, connecting patterns, detecting linked crimes, and uncovering larger operations hidden beneath individual incidents.

Read more about how this “web of crime” is reshaping fraud prevention in today’s blog post.

Financial crime data for 2025 is sobering These crimes are interconnected A FRAML approach to fraud strategies is recommended As digital and financial environments continue to evolve, so do the fraud threats that face American consumers. In a recent post from Forbes, Dr. David Maimon paints a soberi...

16/10/2025

The U.S. Treasury Department has officially eliminated paper check disbursements… well, most of them.

To assist the estimated 10M individuals who will need to transition to direct deposit, the U.S. Treasury Department has published a new Resources Page to educate recipients about the phaseout, offering support in shifting to electronic payments.

How will the elimination of U.S. Treasury paper disbursements affect financial institutions? Very minimally, as U.S. Treasury checks only account for 36M (according to the Federal Reserve data) of the 9-10B paper checks written each year.

U.S. Treasury Department has officially “eliminated” paper check disbursements — with many exceptions New resources page published by the U.S. Treasury to assist in transition How will this impact inancial institutions? As many are aware, as of September 30, 2025 the US Government has official...

15/10/2025

According to TransUnion’s H2 2025 Global Fraud Report, businesses across the globe lost an astonishing 7.7% of their annual revenue to fraud in the past year—totaling an estimated $534 billion.

In the United States -- which has a unique payments landscape as checks are still heavily utilized by businesses, the situation is even more alarming, with losses averaging 9.8% of annual revenue, up 46% from 2024 and 27% higher than the global average. For the surveyed U.S. companies alone, this represents $114 billion in lost revenue.

Take a deeper dive into the TransUnion report and the US's unique fraud challenges.

Companies lost 7.7% of their annual revenue to fraud in the past year The United States has a fraud loss rate that is 27% higher than the global average U.S. House Committee on Financial Services recently convened to discuss the issue Fraud is inflicting record-setting damage on businesses worldwide...

09/10/2025

While the government continues its push toward eliminating paper checks, small and mid-sized businesses aren’t necessarily following the same path.

For many, checks remain a practical and familiar payment method, supported by customers who still prefer them and by operations that aren’t fully equipped for a digital-only approach.

In fact, 91% of businesses still use paper checks, showing just how ingrained they are in everyday transactions.

The move to digital payments may be gaining ground, but widespread adoption among SMBs will take more than new standards – it requires readiness on both sides of the transaction. Until then, checks will continue to play a key role in how businesses send and receive payments.

How do you see this balance shifting in the years ahead?
Read the full post on OrboNation to explore what this means for SMBs and financial institutions.

The U.S. government plans to eliminate paper checks in federal payments Small businesses face a challenge Local merchants, contractors,& independent service providers rely on checks PYMNTS takes a look at the U.S. government’s move to eliminate paper checks in federal payments, which is accelerati...

08/10/2025

AI isn’t just transforming fraud detection; it’s transforming fraud itself.

In the latest Wrestling Payments podcast, Brian Keefe of NICE Actimize sheds light on a problem that isn’t getting enough attention: AI-driven check fraud.

Fraudsters are now using AI to forge, alter, and mass-produce counterfeit checks faster than ever, and sharing their playbooks on the dark web.

But this same technology is also what’s helping financial institutions fight back.

From explainable AI to real-time image forensic analysis, the race between fraudsters and defenders is accelerating, and it’s clear:

Whoever uses AI smarter, wins.

07/10/2025

Are the ABA’s latest fraud prevention campaigns sending the right message?

The American Bankers Association (ABA) has relaunched its award-winning and campaigns for 2025 , aiming to educate consumers and small businesses on how to spot and stop scams.

But, while the intent is spot-on, the messaging in the new Practice Safe Checks videos could easily be misunderstood.

The content promotes digital payments as a “safer” alternative, potentially suggesting that checks themselves are inherently risky rather than emphasizing proper protection and fraud prevention.

Education is key to stopping fraud, but it needs to strike the right tone. Financial institutions must ensure that customers understand both the risks and safeguards of check payments, not just shift to another payment method.

See how the ABA’s messaging has evolved and what it means for check safety in our latest blog:

The ABA has relaunched campaigns to educate consumers The new theme is “Snap Out of It” Some of the video messaging may be misconstrued The American Bankers Association (ABA) has relaunched its award-winning consumer protection campaigns, and , in 2025 to bo...

02/10/2025

Are banks using more AI than they realize?

According to American Banker’s latest survey, institutions are rapidly adopting AI for fraud detection, compliance, financial modeling, and even HR analytics.

Yet many leaders still hesitate over issues of trust and data accuracy.

But here’s the catch: AI is already at work behind the scenes.

Take check processing; fintech vendors are leveraging AI to read and extract data from checks with over 99% accuracy.

For many banks, that means their operations are already running on some of the most reliable AI systems available, even if they don’t label it that way.

The question isn’t whether banks will adopt AI, it’s whether they recognize how deeply it’s already embedded in their day-to-day processes.

Read the full OrboNation blog to see what this means for the future of banking and fraud detection:

AI is transformative for the banking industry Barriers to adoption include trust and data Many banks are unaware that they are already leveraging AI Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the banking industry, offering innovative solutions to improve customer experiences, streamline operations...