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As Asia-Pacific’s digital ecosystem continues to undergo explosive growth, some of its fastest-growing sectors are becoming prime targets for increasingly sophisticated fraud, among them, healthtech and fintech, according to a recent report.
The healthtech and fintech sectors are the most exposed to a new wave of artificial intelligence ( AI )-powered fraud, finds a report by global verification provider Sumsub. Healthtech recorded the sharpest year-on-year ( YoY ) spike across industries in the region, an alarming 723% compared with Q1 2024, while fintech remains persistent with the second-highest YoY rise in Asia-Pacific, with a 116% increase over the same period.
This surge in fraud comes as both sectors experience rapid growth. The fintech sector in Asia-Pacific is set to grow from US$450 billion in 2024 to US$1.15 trillion by 2032, while that of digital health is expected to expand eightfold by 2033, reaching nearly US$488.50 billion.
But as these industries scale, so does the sophistication of the fraud they face. Fuelled by generative AI, the report reveals, synthetic identity documents, deepfakes and AI-driven tactics are evolving rapidly – exploiting gaps in security and compliance to trick systems and commit fraud.
The use of deepfakes is particularly concerning, the report notes, extending beyond election interference and business impersonation to AI-generated job scams. Singapore recorded a staggering 1,500% surge in deepfake fraud cases from 2024, while Hong Kong saw an even more dramatic 1,900% jump.
As AI becomes more accessible, fraudsters, the report states, are using AI-powered tools to construct synthetic identity documents, combining real data like a valid ID number with fictitious details to create a completely new, non-existent persona.
In sectors like fintech and healthtech, where digital onboarding and remote verification are common, these AI-generated documents, the report reveals, are often used to impersonate legitimate users during know-your-customer checks. This allows bad actors to fraudulently access financial services or sensitive health records, posing serious risks to both service providers and end users.
Globally, synthetic identity document fraud cases have surged by 195%, the report shares, with Asia-Pacific seeing an even sharper rise of 233%, underscoring the scale and sophistication of the threat.
Several Asia-Pacific markets have recorded a sharp YoY rise in synthetic identity document fraud ( Q1 2024 to Q1 2025 ), with particularly steep increases in the:
“While fintech fraud is a familiar battleground, given the sector’s long-standing exposure to financial crime and its evolution alongside crypto, the scale of fraud in healthtech signals a worrying new frontier,” says Penny Chai, Sumsub’s vice-president for Asia-Pacific. “As more healthcare services go digital, the sector’s vulnerabilities are being exploited at pace, putting trust in the digital health system at serious risk.
“The surge in AI-powered fraud, including deepfakes and synthetic identity documents, is exposing critical flaws in traditional verification systems. To protect themselves, businesses must move beyond outdated approaches and adopt multi-layered, adaptive defences.”
