As cybersecurity demands grow across industries, bad actors are developing new ways to infiltrate and steal information and money from organizations. Deepfake scams are on the rise, with some reaching eight-figure costs. However, this rising number of scams may be due not only to increased accessibility and quality of AI tools for fraudsters but also because many organizations underestimate their vulnerability. This allows fraudsters to reveal critical detection gaps and capitalize on them.
New data from Regula’s Deepfake Trends 2024 report found this combination of increased tools at fraudsters’ disposal and underestimation of vulnerability to deepfakes is causing a problem. Nearly all (92%) of businesses experienced financial loss due to a deepfake.
The rise of deepfake fraud
In both video and audio format, deepfake fraud attempts are rising regardless of the industry a company operates in. In 2022, 37% of business leaders said they experienced fraud through an audio deepfake, while 29% said they were scammed via a video deepfake. This year, the percentage of companies that have experienced either a video or audio deepfake is 50% and 49%, respectively.
Another method of deception by fraudsters using deepfakes is fake or altered documents, which more than half (58%) of respondents say they’ve experienced during a scam. This figure is an increase from just under half (49%) in 2022. Synthetic identity fraud, or mixing real and fake information during a scam attempt, remained consistent in both 2022 and 2024. While audio and video deepfake incidents have nearly doubled over the past two years, surveyors reassured that fake or altered documents remain the most common type of identity fraud.
Identifying threats
As the frequency of these attacks increases, awareness among decision-makers continues to rise as well. While methods to prevent deepfake fraud vary, understanding the types of fraud a business may be exposed to—especially for CFOs—can drive ideas on how best to incorporate cybersecurity into business practices. The trend of CFO-CIO collaboration in organizations is growing, and finance’s role in creating a sustainable defense plan may be impactful.
The threats business leaders view as most significant remain fake or modified documents, with 71% of respondents identifying this as a significant or moderate threat. Synthetic identity fraud follows closely, with two-thirds (66%) of respondents marking it as a significant or moderate threat. However, synthetic identity fraud had the highest percentage of responses (13%) considering it as “no threat.”
Costs and challenges
While the average deepfake fraud attempt costs businesses nearly $450,000, over a quarter (28%) of business leaders said they have lost over half a million dollars to deepfake fraud. Interestingly, fintech businesses—many of which develop top-tier AI-powered cybersecurity products—lose significantly more money than traditional industries, averaging more than $630,000 in losses.
Confidence in detecting deepfake fraud varies between leadership roles. While 76% of business owners believe their company can detect threats, less than half (47%) of managers agree. This points to a growing gap between leadership’s confidence in cybersecurity and the organization’s actual capacity to defend itself.
