Hong Kong – With their frequent use of digital devices, more than half of Gen Z (51%) say they are the primary targets of fraud schemes, while Millennials report being the most frequently victimised, according to a new report by TransUnion.
The report indicates that 39% of adult respondents in Hong Kong reported being targeted by fraud attempts via online, email, phone, and text messaging over the past three months, with 5% stating they fell victim.
Across generations, Gen Z and Millennials reported the highest targeting rates. In particular, 51% of Gen Z respondents said they were targeted in the past three months—a six-point increase from TransUnion’s Q3 2023 study.
The report suggests that Gen Z’s frequent use of digital devices, which heightens their susceptibility to fraud schemes, could be the reason for this elevated targeting rate compared to other generations.
Meanwhile, 41% of Millennials reported being targeted by fraud attempts, with 7%—the highest rate among generations—indicating they had fallen victim.
Additionally, among all generations who reported being targeted, vishing—fraudulent phone calls intended to extract personal information—was the most common scheme at 36%, followed closely by phishing (fraudulent emails, websites, social posts, QR codes, etc., aimed at data theft) at 33%.
TransUnion’s report also revealed that 5.7% of all attempted digital transactions involving consumers in Hong Kong were flagged as suspected digital fraud in the first half of 2024—10% higher than the global average of 5.2%.
In the first half of 2024, the community sector—encompassing online forums and dating sites—recorded the highest suspected digital fraud rate globally, with Hong Kong at an elevated rate of 15% compared to the global average of 11.5%. TransUnion noted that profile misrepresentation was the most common type of digital fraud encountered in this sector across its global customer base.
Furthermore, the report found that account creation was the highest fraud risk in Hong Kong’s digital communities sector, with 29% of attempted account creations flagged as suspected fraud in H1 2024—a 126% rise from H1 2023. This surge, likely driven by synthetic or stolen identities, aligns with recent Hong Kong police reports of over 500 fraudulent cases in fake compensated dating scams, totalling HK$243 million in losses.
In H1 2024, the retail sector in Hong Kong reported the second-highest suspected digital fraud rate at 9.5%, followed by financial services at 5.5%. Financial services experienced the largest year-over-year increase in suspected fraud at 29%.
These initiatives are crucial in light of the significant year-over-year increase in financial losses during the first half of the year, as TransUnion reports a 78% surge in suspected digital fraud attempts in Hong Kong’s financial services from H1 2023 to H1 2024.
Jerry Ying, chief product officer at TransUnion Asia Pacific, said, “While digital fraud may fluctuate, the prevailing trends in data breaches and scams have an unmistakable impact on consumers. Despite Gen Z and Millennials being particularly vulnerable demographics in the digital era, all consumers rely heavily on businesses to ensure that they enjoy a secure digital experience.”
“It is therefore imperative for businesses across industries to employ a strategy of continuous innovation and friction-right fraud prevention through technologies such as identity verification, IP intelligence, device reputation, and synthetic identity detection that will all be conducive to enhancing consumer trust and delivering better business results,” Ying added.
