Payment fraud jumps 27% to €179m, including 54,000 contactless paymentsDespite a lower fraud rate, cheques recorded the highest average fraud value at €9,741, says Central Bank Fri, 04 Sep, 2026 – 10:22Martin Claffey
The cost of of payment fraud to Irish consumers and businesses jumped 27% to €179m, according to new figures from the Central Bank, with one in every 10,000 payment transactions affected.
Payments sent to accounts located outside of Ireland dominate payment fraud and accounted for 69.8% of the total fraudulent payment value, amounting to €124.89m in 2025, the annual Payment Fraud Statistics show.
While the overall number of fraud transactions rose only marginally, there was a significant increase in overall fraudulent payment value.
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The average value of fraudulent payments varies according to the payment methods used. Despite a lower fraud rate, cheques recorded the highest average fraud value at €9,741. Credit transfers recorded the second-highest average fraud value at €2,412 in 2025.
The value of payments made using e-money institutions ranked third with a notable spike from €692 in 2024 to €1,427 in 2025. Indeed e-money payments exhibited the strongest growth for the second year in a row, increasing by €14.79m (57.7%) to €40.42m, the report shows.
Fraudsters gaining victims trust
The statistics show a marked rise in authorised push payment fraud, also known as ‘manipulation of the payer fraud’. This is where fraudsters gain trust by using social engineering to deceive consumers into authorising payments — now accounts for 45% of total fraud by value (€74.86m), up from its share of 35.2% in 2024. This fraud type is particularly prevalent in credit transfers, representing 67.2% of all credit transfer fraud, up from 45.6% in 2024.
In June, the Banking and Payments Federation reported a surge in AI-generated online adverts promoting bogus state-backed investment schemes. BPFI head of financial crime Niamh Davenport also told the Irish Examiner that hard-pressed consumers “are definitely more tempted” to fall for a financial scam because of the cost-of-living crisis. “We hear people saying: ‘I’ve been saving my whole life — I wanted to make sure I had enough for retirement,” said Ms Davenport.
Card and contactless fraud
There were 57,000 fraudulent transactions recorded at physical point-of-sale terminals using cards, amounting to €5.61m in value. The number of fraudulent contactless payments totalled 54,000, including 48,000 mobile wallet payments.
‘Issuance of payment orders by the fraudster’ – where fraudsters use stolen card, account, or personal information for a payment – represented the largest fraud type by value totalling €91.32m, which was more than half of the total payment fraud in 2025. Within this category, card details theft where fraudsters acquired personalised security credentials such as PINs or passwords accounted for 65.7% of all payment order card fraud.
The total value of fraudulent payments reported by Irish resident payment service providers stood at €179.04m, up 27.2% from €140.80m in 2024.
Deputy Governor for Consumer and Investor Protection Colm Kincaid said: “Financial frauds and scams continue to be a key area of concern for the Central Bank of Ireland, as it is for regulators and law enforcement agencies all over the world.
“As we see criminals become ever more sophisticated in their approach, all actors in the system from financial firms to technology companies need to continue to improve their systems and controls to reduce the likelihood of these frauds occurring. And, where fraud does occur, firms need to provide appropriate and timely support to affected consumers. The Central Bank has work underway with the firms we regulate to improve customer service for fraud cases.”
Central Bank research shows that 38% of financial fraud victims never report their experience to their financial service provider or any authority. “Fraud victims who report their experience are more likely to recover their money. By taking these steps and reporting fraud promptly, you protect yourself and help your financial service provider identify fraud patterns to protect other consumers.”
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