Banking Threat Bulletin: October 2025
Fraud doesn’t stand still. Every day brings new tactics, new victims, and new lessons for the banking industry. What once seemed like isolated attacks has grown into a connected, adaptive ecosystem that crosses borders and industries.
Introducing the Banking Threat Bulletin. This digest examines the stories, data, and operations shaping how financial institutions defend customers, revenue, and reputation. It isn’t a press release or a product update. It’s an intelligence briefing for professionals on the front line of digital trust.
October set the tone for the months ahead. From billion-dollar business losses to malware that behaves like a person, the headlines revealed how fast the threat landscape is changing and what it means for banks trying to stay ahead.
1. The 10 Percent Problem
A new American Banker survey found that U.S. companies lost almost ten percent of their total revenue to fraud in 2024, up from 6.7 percent the year before. Account takeovers, synthetic identities, and insider abuse topped the list.
It’s a warning sign. Fraud is no longer a background cost; it’s a threat to strategy, growth, and customer confidence. Banks that still treat fraud as an operational issue risk losing credibility in boardrooms and balance sheets alike.
2. Consumers Feel Safer at Home Than Online
Mastercard’s 2025 Consumer Cybersecurity Survey revealed that 70 percent of people believe protecting digital data is harder than securing their home. Almost four in five said they had received a scam attempt in the past year.
That mistrust doesn’t just sit with consumers; it lands on their banks. When customers question the safety of digital channels, adoption slows. Banks that simplify security and educate customers will strengthen confidence; those that rely on friction or fear will weaken it.
3. Collaboration Replaces Silence in Switzerland
Switzerland recorded more than 42,000 cyber-fraud offences in 2024, a 40 percent rise from the previous year. Most involved social-engineering scams rather than technical breaches.
In response, the Swiss Bankers Association has published recommendations for collective fraud prevention in account-to-account payments. The plan includes a public awareness campaign branded PayAttent!on, a shared risk-scoring service for participating banks, and closer coordination with telecom and marketplace sectors.
This marks a cultural shift. For a market built on discretion, collaboration is becoming the new standard of protection. Swiss banks are acknowledging that defending customers requires openness and shared intelligence, not quiet independence.
4. Europol Dismantles Global SIM-Farm Operation
Europol led an operation that shut down a criminal service hosting more than 40,000 active SIM cards across 80 countries. The infrastructure enabled phishing, one-time-password bypass, and large-scale account abuse.
The investigation confirmed that cybercrime now functions as a commercial supply chain. Fraudsters buy infrastructure the way legitimate firms buy software. Banks must counter with network-level monitoring, device intelligence, and faster data exchange between institutions.
5. Malware That Acts Human
A new Android trojan called Herodotus was identified by security researchers. It mimics human gestures such as scrolling, typing, and pausing to evade behavioral detection.
The finding shows how close automation has come to passing as human. Fraud systems that rely on simple behavioral patterns will struggle. Next-generation detection will need to recognise intent, not imitation.
6. UK and US Sanction Global Scam Network
The UK and US jointly sanctioned a transnational network behind large-scale online scams that used trafficked workers in Southeast Asia. The group operated criminal call centres running investment and romance scams targeting victims worldwide.
The action reframes fraud as organised exploitation, not only financial crime. It freezes assets, restricts travel, and pressures intermediaries that help such networks operate. For banks, it highlights rising scrutiny of cross-border payment flows. Enhanced monitoring and intelligence sharing are now critical to disrupt the financial links behind these scams.
7. America’s Fraud Landscape Gets a Reality Check
Forbes’ Fraud in America 2025 series highlighted how scams are evolving across peer-to-peer payments, cryptocurrency exchanges, and digital banking. Fraudsters are exploiting the seams between systems instead of breaching them.
The conclusion was blunt. Technology alone is not enough. Coordination across departments and data streams is now the difference between prevention and reaction.
8. UK Signs Landmark Cyber-Crime Convention
On 25–26 October 2025, the UK formally committed to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime in a ceremony held in Hanoi. The move emphasised that cybercrime must be tackled globally, and that national justice systems cannot act alone.
For banks, the significance lies in stronger cross-border cooperation. Investigations, evidence sharing, and asset recovery mechanisms are set to improve. Fraud teams should prepare for more rapid international requests, greater transparency of financial flows, and increased demands for collaboration with law-enforcement partners.
The message is clear: legal frameworks are catching up with fraud’s global scale. Institutions that remain siloed risk falling behind in both prevention and response.
October in Perspective
Fraud is no longer a niche risk or a technical problem. It is a reputational test for the entire industry. Every scam is a story about belief: belief that the bank would intervene, belief that systems could be trusted.
This month showed that the threat landscape is evolving quickly, but so are the tools and ideas needed to counter it. Banks that combine intelligence, empathy, and agility will lead the next chapter of digital trust.
Banking Threat Bulletin highlights the stories shaping global fraud prevention and customer protection. Stay informed. Strengthen trust. Protect your customers.