How eCommerce Merchants Fight Fraud for the Holiday Shopping Season

“How eCommerce Merchants Fight Fraud for the Holiday Shopping Season” is the fourth edition of the Identity Verification Series, a collaboration between PYMNTS Intelligence and Intellicheck. It explores fraud and verification issues in the eCommerce industry, details current and future technologies, and looks into merchants’ upcoming fraud-prevention efforts. This brief focuses on how eCommerce retailers address the alarming growth of identity-related fraud as the holiday shopping season rapidly approaches.

The eCommerce Sector Grapples With Fraud

The holiday shopping season is good for businesses and a five-star alarm for eCommerce fraud.

Merchants are gearing up for the holiday shopping season. Consumers are ready to spend, but can they shop knowing their data and finances are safe? Holiday retail sales are set to grow by 2.3% and 3.3% in 2024, according to Deloitte’s annual holiday retail forecast. To realize this opportunity, merchants will need to not only stock their shelves but also be ready to address the growth in retail fraud. The influx of customers shopping for the holidays can place extra pressure on retailers. Under time constraints, retailers may turn a blind eye to steps they would take to detect fraud, such as verifying a shopper’s mailing address.

Small issues can quickly add up for merchants. An estimated 3% of their total eCommerce revenue is lost to fraud each year, and a similar share of total eCommerce orders turn out to be fraudulent. Globally, the value of eCommerce fraud is expected to rise from $44.3 billion in 2024 to $107 billion in 2029 — an increase of 141%.

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