Anti-fraud resilience in 2026: what is changing and we are not yet seeing

Season 7 Episode 02

Transcript

Juan José Ríos (Host): Risk evolves, fraud innovates, and security cannot be left behind.

This is Mundo Financiero Seguro, the Plus TI podcast on cybersecurity, fraud, AML, fintech, and risk management. In each episode, we share clear ideas, real trends, and key tools to protect the financial ecosystem.

Welcome. My name is Juan José Ríos, and in this episode, we will explore six key questions. Not to talk about tools, but to understand what is changing, what we are underestimating, and what anti-fraud resilience looks like in practice.

For this conversation, I am joined by two voices with extensive experience in the industry:

• From Spain, Julio San José, Director of Digital Transformation and Cyber Security at Álvarez & Marsal.
• From Colombia, Marta Leuro, Vice President of Customer Success and Consulting at Plus TI.

Thank you both for joining us.

Julio San José: Thank you very much to Plus TI for the invitation. It is a pleasure to be with you again on this podcast.

Marta Leuro: Hello , good morning. Thank you, Julio, for joining us. You are an influential voice in Europe and Latin America. Juan José, it's a pleasure to be with you today.

Juan José Ríos: When it comes to fraud, many organizations still think of the same old attacks. However, there are clear signs that the problem is shifting elsewhere, driven by new forms of deception and automation.

Marta, what types of crimes that are currently underestimated will have a systematic impact in 2026 due to the use of artificial intelligence and criminal automation?

Martha Leuro: Thank you , Juan José.

I don't think that in 2026 we will have "more fraud" in terms of volume. What we will see is more organized, more credible, more agile, and faster fraud.

These are not new types of fraud, but rather improved types. The ones we already know will become much more sophisticated. Previously, we talked about fraud due to technical failures or weaknesses in onboarding processes. Today, fraud mainly attacks trust.

I identify three major trends:

1. Hyperrealistic impersonation.
   We are no longer talking about poorly written emails. Today we see perfect messages, calls with voices identical to those of a financial advisor, a boss, or a family member. What's more, the context is credible. The attacker knows enough information to generate complete trust.
2. Evolved synthetic identities.
   It's not just about inventing an identity. It's about building a solid digital identity, with documents created to pass technical checks and advanced validations.
3. Organized networks of deception.
   It is no longer an isolated criminal. These are structures that recruit victims, manipulate them emotionally, and manage the movement of money from start to finish. It is a complete chain of fraud.

Fraud in 2026 will be more industrialized and focused on deception as the trigger for the transaction.

Juan José Ríos: If fraud is no longer sporadic but continuous, the question is inevitable: why do some organizations resist it better than others? Julio.

July Saint Joseph:

The difference lies in three factors:

1. Anticipation.
   A resilient organization does not wait to be attacked. It consumes fraud intelligence, monitors typologies, and adjusts controls before the problem escalates.
2. Quick decision with context.
   Operates with layered controls that combine technical and behavioral signals. Knows when to block, when to challenge, and when to allow. Does not paralyze legitimate customers or let fraudsters slip through.
3. Immediate learning.
   When fraud occurs, react within minutes. Adjust controls, messages, and coordination between onboarding, transactional, customer service, and compliance. Fraud is no longer a silo.

Resilience is not a reaction. It is preparation and constant learning. It has an engineering component and a human component: the ability to recover and improve after the impact.

Juan José Ríos: Julio , which types of technology are evolving faster in fintech and digital payments than in traditional banking, and why?

Julio San José: In fintech and digital payments, everything happens at an incredible speed. With instant payments, there are only 7 or 8 seconds to block a suspicious transaction.

Three fronts are accelerating in particular:

• Fraud in opening accounts (admission).
• Scams involving instant transfers.
• Use of bridge accounts or mule accounts.

In addition, many fintech companies were created with a focus on experience and growth, not always with fraud prevention built into their design. This makes them more agile, but also more attractive to cybercriminals.

Juan José Ríos: Martha , how should defenses be redefined in 2026 in the face of hybrid and chain fraud?

Martha Leuro: Traditional defenses are no longer sufficient. Today, we continue to view fraud as isolated events: card fraud, transfer fraud, digital fraud. But fraud occurs in chains.

A useful defense must cover three layers:

1. Before the transaction.
   Detect early signs: changes in behavior, unusual urgency, decisions that are out of character.
2. During the movement of money.
   Not only detecting a suspicious transaction, but breaking the cycle of fraud.
3. After the event.
   Learn. If fraud occurs and nothing changes, the defense has failed.

Fraud does not break at the end. It breaks in a chain.

Juan José Ríos: Julio , what human skills will be critical in 2026 that are not sufficiently developed today?

July Saint Joseph:

At least five:

1. Applied adversarial thinking. Think like the attacker from the design stage.
2. Interpretation of weak signals. Sophisticated fraud does not shout, it whispers.
3. Calibrated decision-making under uncertainty. Acting with 75% of the information without resorting to improvisation or paralysis.
4. Empathetic communication in crises. Customers are scared or embarrassed. That interaction generates valuable information.
5. Ethical governance of AI. Knowing when to trust models, detecting biases, and balancing friction and security.

These are not "soft skills." They are strategic competencies.

Juan José Ríos: Martha , what indicators should a leader monitor to know if they will be resilient in the coming years?

Martha Leuro: A resilient leader doesn't just measure how much fraud they block, but how they manage the entire chain.

I would highlight five indicators:

1. Early warning signs detected before fraud occurs.
2. Time between detection and intervention.
3. Distinction between unauthorized fraud and payments authorized under false pretenses.
4. Tracking the movement and concealment of money (fraud-AML synergy).
5. Customer repeat business.

It is no longer enough to classify types. We need to understand the entire chain.

Martha Leuro: In 2026, fraud will become more organized and industrialized. Measuring resilience means measuring whether we see the signs, react in time, and break the entire chain.

The question for those listening to us is: Are you providing feedback on signals or just classifying types?

Julio San José: We are faced with a paradox: the more digital and automated businesses become, the more human anti-fraud measures must be.

Resilience is not a technological project. It is an organizational transformation that combines technology with human judgment.

My recommendation: be more digital, but also more human.

Juan José Ríos: Fraud is no longer an isolated event. It is an organized capability that learns, adapts, and scales.

The question is not whether organizations will be attacked, but whether they are learning at the same pace as deception evolves.

Anti-fraud resilience is not built solely with technology, but with judgment, coordination, and continuous learning.

Thank you, Julio, thank you, Marta, and thank you, everyone, for joining us for this episode of Mundo Financiero Seguro. I'm Juan José Ríos.
Thank you for listening.