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Ireland’s central bank has released new fraud statistics as the government commits to a variety of measures to deal with payments fraud.
The Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) has reported a significant increase in payments fraud, with losses surging 26 percent in 2023 to €126m, up from €100m in 2022.
This sharp rise highlights the growing sophistication of fraud schemes, with card payments a significant vulnerability for the EU country.
Fraudulent card transactions accounted for 0.034 percent of total card payments by value, slightly above the EU average of 0.031 percent. Online card transactions dominated this category, representing €37.4m, or 86 percent, of total card fraud.
According to the central bank, a notable factor in this was the circumvention of strong customer authentication (SCA) protocols, with 76 percent of fraudulent online payments bypassing these measures.
Cross-border transactions posed additional challenges, meanwhile, contributing to 60 percent, or €77m, of total fraud losses, and the CBI found that fraud in money remittances tripled from €2.5m in 2022 to €8.2m in 2023.
Credit transfer fraud, a type of authorised push payment (APP) fraud, accounted for the highest fraud value at €70m, which was 60 percent of total losses, despite making up just 4 percent of fraudulent transactions.
The CBI echoes its counterparts in Europe and further afield in noting that social engineering tactics such as payer manipulation have become increasingly common — instances rose from 27 percent of cases in early 2022 to 42 percent in 2023.
Despite the rise in fraud, Ireland’s overall fraud rate remains low compared with EU averages.
For example, fraudulent transactions accounted for just 0.01 percent of total payments by volume and 0.001 percent by value in 2023. However, the total number of fraud cases surged 43 percent, from 396,000 in 2022 to 568,000 in 2023.
Comparison with the UK
Ireland’s fraud losses are significantly lower than those in the UK, where fraud losses totalled £571.7m (€660m) in the first half of 2024 alone.
Card fraud is a key issue in both countries, but the dynamics are different.
In Ireland, 0.034 percent of card payments were fraudulent, whereas in the UK, card fraud has risen by 5 percent, driven primarily by "card not present" cases.
According to recent UK Finance statistics, APP fraud accounted for £213.7m in the UK during the first half of 2024 — 37 percent of total fraud losses.
In contrast, Ireland’s findings did not explicitly highlight APP fraud, although credit transfer fraud accounted for €70m in 2023 and both nations face challenges with cross-border fraud.
Ireland’s fraud fighting plans
The Irish government’s latest programme places significant emphasis on combating fraud in the financial services sector, with a dedicated section in its recently published plans.
Central to this effort is the implementation of the National Payments Strategy (NPS), which outlines measures to strengthen fraud prevention and enhance consumer protection.
A key initiative is the creation of a shared fraud database, facilitated by the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI).
This database will allow organisations to share data, detect suspicious activity and adjust fraud monitoring systems in response to emerging threats.
To address the rising issue of telecom-related scams, the government plans to introduce an SMS scam filter and establish an SMS ID Registry, and these measures aim to block fraudulent texts and reduce the risk of scams through telecom channels.
In addition, telecom operators will implement a "Do Not Originate" list to prevent scammers spoofing inbound-only numbers associated with banks and public services.
Online fraud is also a focus area, with the government advocating for national and EU legislation to restrict advertisements for financial products to regulated entities.
The BPFI will apply for "trusted flagger" status under the Digital Services Act, which would grant priority access to report fraudulent content on online platforms, ensuring swift action against scams.
To improve coordination across sectors, the government plans to establish an Anti-Fraud Forum, bringing together telecom firms, financial service providers, online platforms and regulators.
Chaired by an independent leader rotating every 2.5 years, the forum will facilitate information sharing, optimise interventions and address emerging fraud trends.
It marks the first time fraud prevention will be tackled comprehensively across industries, with annual reports to key government departments ensuring accountability.
