Smile ID, a leading provider of identity verification solutions in Africa, has published its 2025 Digital Identity Fraud in Africa Report, shedding light on significant fraud trends across the continent. The report indicates that West Africa experienced the highest biometric fraud rates in 2024, with spoof attempts escalating from 15% to over 5% compared to 2023. This surge underscores the increasing dependence on biometric verification and the advanced methods fraudsters are using to exploit system vulnerabilities. The report provides actionable strategies for leaders to protect trust, revenue, and operational stability in 2025.
Analyzing anonymized data from over 110 million identity verification checks conducted by Smile ID across Central, East, West, and Southern Africa in 2024, the report highlights ongoing challenges and opportunities. The widespread adoption of biometric verification over traditional textual methods has significantly strengthened fraud prevention, driving the overall fraud rate during Know Your Customer (KYC) checks down to 25% in 2024—a 4-percentage-point decrease. However, this progress has led fraudsters to develop more sophisticated attack methods targeting biometric systems, resulting in substantial financial losses across key African markets. Notably, Nigerian banks reported N42.6 billion in fraud losses in the second quarter of 2024 alone, surpassing the total N9.4 billion losses recorded in all of 2023, according to the Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC).
Smile ID continues to address unique threats faced by African businesses during user onboarding, such as identity farming, insider-assisted account takeovers, and advanced document forgeries. Key findings from the 2025 report include:
- East Africa reported the highest biometric and document rejection rates at 27%.
- Central Africa matched West Africa at 22%, while Southern Africa recorded a 21% rejection rate.
- Biometric fraud attempts are steadily increasing, reaching a quarterly average of 16%—the highest recorded in the past three years.
- Authentication attempts showed four times higher fraud rates compared to registration, indicating a significant rise in account takeover risks.
- Across all African regions, fraudulent activities concentrated between 8 PM and 4 AM West Africa Time (WAT), peaking at 12 AM WAT.
Commenting on the report, Mark Straub, CEO of Smile ID, stated: “The future of fraud prevention lies in adaptability. While AI provides fraudsters with powerful new tools, it also helps security practitioners harness global intelligence to counter zero-day attacks and automate processes that were once manual.
“Fintech platforms with weak KYC protocols remain the most vulnerable, as these bad actors use identity farming to create fraudulent accounts that conceal the origins of illicit funds. Tackling these vulnerabilities requires collaboration between industries, governments, and technology providers to create a safer digital ecosystem.”
The report’s release follows the recent introduction of Enhanced SmartSelfie™, an advanced biometric verification technology designed to withstand sophisticated fraud attempts, including deepfakes, AI-generated faces, and replay videos. When combined with a unified approach, African businesses can secure their operations, build trust, and drive economic growth.
Established in 2017, Smile ID has transformed identity verification in Africa, completing over 200 million verification checks by November 2024. As the continent’s leading provider of digital identity verification, fraud detection, and KYC compliance solutions, the company offers scalable, Africa-focused tools optimized for real-time onboarding, anti-fraud measures, and AI-driven identity verification. Supported by investors like Costanoa Ventures and CRE Venture Capital, Smile ID is driving Africa’s digital economy by enabling businesses, governments, and individuals to build trust in underserved markets.
