Last month, BioCatch released its first country-specific report for Brazil, analyzing the most prevalent fraud trends we’re seeing in the country. Now, a few weeks later, I’d like to circle back and take a closer look at one of those trends we highlighted: fraud originating from stolen devices.
We spent some time discussing stolen device fraud in last year's edition of our digital fraud trends in Latin America report. We’ve also observed spikes in stolen device fraud in the UK and across Europe, as covered in our EMEA report earlier this year.
Last year, we reported how cases of fraud from stolen devices had increased year-over-year in Brazil, almost doubling in fact. So far, in 2024, we’ve seen a decline in stolen device fraud in the country, with 13% fewer cases compared to the same period in 2023.
An important piece of context that may help us to understand this shift in Brazil lies in new functionality on iPhones, which represent only a third of all mobile traffic in the country but more than 50% of stolen device cases.
In January, Apple announced the release of a new iOS version that offered “stolen device protection.” This functionality adds extra layers of security to the authentication process, as well as a security delay for highest-risk activities, making it more difficult for thieves to update physical biometrics (fingerprint and retina scanning) that previously enabled such fraud. Interestingly, this feature is not activated by default, with users having to enable it themselves. More information can be found on the Apple website.
However, this increased Apple security will not stop stolen device fraud. Fraudsters can still obtain passcodes via a low-tech but effective strategy: shoulder surfing (looking over their victim’s shoulder as they enter their codes).
In Brazil, while just 3.7% of all fraud takes place between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., 28% of all fraud from a stolen device happens overnight. Moreover, 35% takes place on Friday and Saturday night. Similar trends have been picked up in cases analysed from Europe too.
This perhaps suggests that when users are in environments where they don’t perceive threats or may be less aware of them (reveling and relaxing while inside or between visiting bars, restaurants, night clubs, late-night eateries, etc., for example), they become vulnerable to these opportunistic, organized crimes.
We’ll continue to monitor this trend both in Brazil and around the world. Keep an eye on our site for updates and the latest on ATO protection.
