A new report by TransUnion shows that more than four in five Kenyans were targeted by fraudsters between August and December 2024.
According to the findings, 82% of respondents encountered fraud attempts via email, phone calls, text messages, or online platforms.
Smishing (fraudulent texts) was the most reported method at 39%, followed by phishing (fraudulent emails and websites) at 36%, and vishing (fraudulent phone calls) at 33%.
The report, released on June 17, 2025, is part of TransUnion’s H1 2025 Update to the State of Omnichannel Fraud Report.
"Kenya has a 133.7% mobile phone penetration rate... so it’s easy to understand why digital fraud would be such a common tactic among fraudsters targeting this region,” said Amritha Reddy, Senior Director of Fraud Solutions at TransUnion Africa.
Despite high targeting, only 11% of Kenyans said they actually fell victim. However, nearly half (45%) reported losing money to fraud in the past year.
Third-party seller scams were the leading cause of financial loss, followed by unemployment fraud and account takeovers.
Gaming topped the list of industries targeted by suspected digital fraud in Kenya, recording a 12.9% attempt rate in 2024.
This marked a 33.8% increase from the previous year. Retail and video gaming followed, although both saw a drop in fraud attempt volumes.
Globally, online communities and dating platforms were the most affected, with nearly 12% of all transactions suspected to be fraudulent.
In Kenya, the median reported loss from fraud in the last year was Ksh116,108, compared to a global median of Sh226,132.
Reddy noted: “It is encouraging to see that attempts at digital fraud have decreased across all but two of the surveyed industries in Kenya.”
TransUnion based its analysis on a consumer pulse survey and data from its TruValidate™ fraud detection platform.
