Banking Scam Attempts Rise 35% as Mobile Devices Dominate Fraud

Attempted banking scams increased by 35% over the past year, with 90% of recorded scam sessions taking place on mobile devices, according to BioCatch’s 2026 Global Scams report.

Released on September 30, the findings draw on data from more than 370 financial institutions across 21 countries, serving over 760 million users.

While scam attempts continued to rise, growth had slowed from the 65% increase reported in the previous year’s edition of the report, which could indicate financial institutions becoming more effective at detecting fraud. The proportion of scam sessions involving mobile devices rose by 5%.

Employment scams recorded the fastest growth of any category, with reported victims increasing by 258%. However, purchase scams remained the most common category, accounting for around 33% of reported attempted scams.

Investment scams had the highest average attempted case value, at $6,600, around five times the average across all scam types. Romance scam attempts also increased by 23%, although this was far below the significant growth rate reported in 2025.

Thomas Peacock, BioCatch’s Director of Global Fraud Intelligence, said:

Social engineering scams have not suddenly become less prevalent or sophisticated. If anything, artificial intelligence has lowered the barrier to entry for aspiring scammers, allowing more bad actors to create more convincing scams at a scale we’ve never seen before. In response, many banks have realized behavioral intelligence enables them to recognize signs of manipulation and coercion before an accountholder ever authorizes a transaction.

With mobile devices dominating recorded scam sessions, device intelligence can provide additional context around a banking login or payment. Analyzing device and network signals alongside customer behavior can help banks prevent fraud by flagging suspicious activity and triggering additional checks before funds leave an account.