Filipinos Face Widespread Digital Fraud Exposure Despite Lower Financial Losses, TransUnion Finds
Frequently Asked Questions
The Philippines' suspected digital fraud rate stood at 4.1% in 2025, exceeding the global average of 3.8%. According to TransUnion, this marks the sixth consecutive year that the country's digital fraud rate has remained above the global level, reflecting a persistent threat landscape.
Although 38% of Filipino consumers reported losing money to digital fraud, the actual financial loss per incident was lower than the global average. The median reported loss in the Philippines was $850 (approximately P50,000), which is significantly lower than the global median loss of $1,671 (approximately P98,000).
Yogesh Daware, chief commercial officer at TransUnion Philippines, explained that while a massive 72% of surveyed Filipinos reported being targeted by scams, the financial losses per incident remained relatively low. This indicates that the local fraud landscape is defined by frequent, lower-value scams distributed across digital channels rather than isolated, high-value cases.
The fraud risk is primarily concentrated at the initial identity verification and authentication stages, specifically at the account login phase, which saw a suspected fraud rate of 6.1% (compared to 4.3% globally). This is followed by account creation at 4.5% and financial transactions at 1.1%.
The most prevalent fraud tactics reported by targeted Filipinos are phishing (fraudulent emails, websites, or QR codes designed to steal credentials) at 45%. This is closely followed by smishing (fraudulent text messages) at 38% and third-party seller scams on legitimate online retail sites at 28%.
