Policy moves against deepfakes

Pinar Alpay at Signicat describes a wake-up call for businesses

 

The Danish government’s recent proposal to grant individuals copyright over their facial features and voice to combat deepfakes is a groundbreaking move in the fight against online fraud.

 

Deepfakes are AI-generated videos or voices created with advanced software to convincingly impersonate real people for scams, fraud, or identity theft. While the Danish legislation is aimed at safeguarding citizens, it also sends a clear signal to the rest of the world: AI-powered identity fraud is no longer a future threat. It’s here, and it’s growing fast.

 

Take this statistic from Signicat’s report, The Battle in the Dark: deepfake-related identity fraud jumped from 0.1% in 2021 to 4.7% in 2024. That surge is not isolated to politics or social media. In fact, it’s in the corporate world where the threat may be even more devastating, silently impacting customer trust, revenue, and reputation.

 

 

Today’s threat landscape

Fraud has evolved dramatically in the last decade. Today, artificial intelligence is giving fraudsters an arsenal of advanced tools that require minimal effort to exploit maximum vulnerability.

 

Here are three of the most commonly used identity fraud tactics businesses are facing now: 

• ID document forgery: This is probably a fraud tactic that has been used for a very long time. However, AI now allows the tampering of identity documents such as identity cards or passports in a very sophisticated way, and at scale.
• Account takeover (ATO): This is where stolen credentials meet AI-enhanced phishing techniques. By targeting the customer directly, exploiting weak security habits, fraudsters gain unauthorised access to accounts, undermining the trust customers have placed in your business. This is one of the costliest form of fraud for businesses
• Social engineering: These attacks increasingly use highly convincing AI-generated content—and in some cases, deepfakes— to manipulate individuals to divulge their confidential information to take control of their accounts.

These tactics can be extremely sophisticated, as well as used at scale. And they are no longer niche. The same report shows that 71% of businesses surveyed say most fraudulent attempts against them now involve some form of AI. In consumer credit, where the rewards of fraud are the highest, 12.4% of identity fraud attempts already involve deepfakes.

 

On average, 22% of a business’s annual revenue is impacted by identity fraud and the costs of trying to prevent it. Even more concerning, according to Signicat’s 2025 research, is that most businesses are confident they are winning the battle against identity fraud. 74% of companies believe they’re tackling the issue, even though 1 in 5 transactions remains fraudulent. Why the disconnect?

 

The answer is simple: businesses are in a bubble. Remarkably, less than half of them (45%) are measuring the impact of identity fraud on their businesses; as a result, the consequences of fraud aren’t clear to them.

 

AI has reshaped the threat landscape. It’s time businesses reshaped their defences, too.

 

 

Combating AI-driven identity fraud

Combating AI-driven identity fraud requires a multi-layered, forward-thinking approach. Companies must go beyond basic compliance and adopt solutions that evolve as fast as the threat itself.

 

A critical need for businesses is to improve fraud measurement and reporting and rethink fraud defences accordingly. Key areas to address include: 

• A multilayered approach, using a combination of technologies, starting with early risk assessment: Automating identity workflows with upfront risk assessment so the security level is stepped up if needed, and the perfect balance between smooth user experience, optimal fraud prevention costs and the right level of friction for security can be established. Risk assessment tools could include velocity checks, geolocation and behavioural analytics among many to help flag inconsistencies from the first interaction, such as patterns like multiple sign-ups from a single device or unusual login behaviours.
• Robust identity verification and authentication methods covering all vulnerable fronts: OCR or NFC based identity document verification, document tampering detection, advanced machine learning enabled likeness and liveness matching, deepfake detection and secure authentication tools offer powerful defences against identity document forgery and impersonation.
• Battling AI with AI: Using AI for fraud detection is no longer optional. Machine learning can analyse massive datasets, uncover subtle anomalies, and predict fraud before it happens. 

80% of businesses surveyed by Signicat in 2025 say they’re consistently updating their technology and processes but believe that pushing back against fraudsters only causes them to change tactics or targets.

 

Investing in AI for fraud detection is now essential. AI can analyse vast datasets, spot patterns, and predict vulnerabilities before they’re exploited. However, fraud prevention isn’t just technical - it’s an organisational challenge. Teams at all levels need training to handle fraud effectively, while customers should be educated on security practices. Empowering employees and customers helps build a unified front against AI-driven fraud.

 

 

The need for urgency and a call to action

The Danish government’s decision to act quickly against deepfakes is commendable, but it also highlights the urgency needed worldwide. Companies can’t afford to delay or wait for new regulations to direct them.

 

Managers and decision-makers must reassess their defences immediately. Where are the most vulnerable areas of your business? Are your organisation’s processes fortified against the threats outlined above? Are you actively implementing AI into your fraud prevention strategy to negate the risk posed by criminals using the same tools?

 

Don’t leave identity fraud to chance. Proactivity, not reactivity, will determine whether your business thrives or succumbs as fraudsters grow increasingly sophisticated. Protect your organisation’s reputation, revenue and customers today. Seek out tailored insights and comprehensive fraud prevention solutions for your digital identity processes.

 

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Pinar Alpay is Chief Product and Marketing Officer at Signicat

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com and Arkadiusz Warguła