Subscription Fraud Still the Most Popular

A recent study, conducted by Neural Technologies, has determined that subscription/identity fraud is still the leading method for users attempting to fraudulently gain access to services.

Additionally, these reports are corroborated by last year’s CFCA 2013 Global Fraud Loss Survey, which also showed that telecom companies are battling this type of fraud more than any other.

Neural Technologies collected this data during their 2014 User Forum, where mobile network operators from all over the planet met to share their experiences and ideas for fraud trends in both the present and the future.

During this forum, which featured both case studies from customers and the latest product information from Neural Technologies, the company's different customers noted the increasing frequency of subscription and identity fraud. Though this style of fraud has been popular for years, the malicious groups that undertake the task are becoming increasingly creative.

Fraud attempts are not just more powerful and able to exploit account takeovers and weaknesses in online Web portals, but the ways in which these identity frauds are undertaken have also increased in variety. Hackers are targeting private branch exchanges (PBX) to gain access to services in a high-tech approach, yet even lower-tech methods like stolen phones, sleeper accounts and simple social engineering are also incredibly effective.