AI is making banking scams more convincing as digital crime claims rise to R2.4 billion

South Africans lost R2.4 billion to digital banking crime in 2025, with criminals using social engineering, banking scams, artificial intelligence and banking apps to target customers

South Africans lost R2.4 billion to digital banking crime in 2025 as criminals increasingly turned to technology and social engineering to target bank customers.

This is according to a new report by the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), which recorded 110,074 digital banking crime incidents in 2025.

Banking app-related crime accounted for about 89% of reported cases and 70.5% of the total client claim amount.

SABRIC said criminals used tactics including impersonation, phishing, remote-access software and false payment instructions to trick customers into sharing sensitive information or approving transactions.

“ Digital Banking Crime remains the biggest threat, with reported losses increasing to R2.4 billion in 2025, up from approximately R1.9 billion in 2024. Banking app-related crime accounted for more than 70% of reported digital banking losses,” the report states.

Card fraud also remained a major concern in 2025, with losses increasing by 18% to R1.7 billion.

SABRIC said card-not-present fraud remained the biggest contributor to card fraud losses, although losses in this category declined for both credit and debit cards.

The report also found that some types of banking crime declined in 2025.

ATM attacks fell by 46%, while cash losses linked to these attacks dropped by 63%. Bank robberies also declined, with two incidents reported in 2025, compared with eight in 2024.

SABRIC said most digital banking crime was linked to social engineering, where criminals manipulate people into giving them information or approving transactions.

“Criminals exploited trust, urgency and real-time interaction with digital channels to persuade customers or employees to disclose information, approve access or authorise transactions. Fraud events often involved multiple overlapping typologies, allowing incidents to progress rapidly from initial contact to financial loss.”

Criminals often impersonated banks, police officers and other trusted organisations to pressure victims into making payments or sharing sensitive information.

SABRIC also warned that artificial intelligence is making some scams more convincing through realistic messages, images and voice recordings.