Behind every seamless digital payment, there is a hidden war raging, one that users rarely see but depend on every single day. While Nigerians tap their phones to send or receive money in seconds, fraud prevention and compliance teams work tirelessly in the background to stop millions of naira from disappearing into the hands of scammers.
Few people understand this battlefield better than Christopher Gunias, Compliance Chief at VitalSwap. Though based in the United States, Gunias oversees global fintech risk operations, giving him a front-row seat to the escalating threats facing African digital finance, especially Nigeria’s booming fintech market.
And according to him, the danger has never been greater.
AI Has Supercharged Fraud—and Nigeria Is Feeling It
Fraud attempts have surged dramatically in recent years, and Gunias says the transformation in scam tactics is unlike anything the industry has seen.
“We’re no longer in the days of Western Union, where you walk into a store and put cash on the table,” he explains. “Everything is done online now, and scammers are getting incredibly good at using AI, fake images, and doctored ID cards.”
AI has turned crude forgeries into terrifyingly realistic documents. Automated systems often catch the fakes, but human reviewers face a different challenge entirely.
“When a human is involved, it’s far more difficult to spot a fake driver’s licence or national ID card,” Gunias says. “Fraudsters are testing both the technology and the human side for weaknesses.”
This technological arms race has led to a 25% spike in fraud attempts compared to just a few yearsalarming rise for an industry already dealing with regulatory pressure and customer trust issues.
Social Media: The New Goldmine for Identity Thieves
But fake documents are only the beginning. Social media has quietly become one of the biggest sources of stolen identities.
“They find your pictures, your birthday, your phone number, everything,” Gunias says. “Then they use AI to generate fake IDs, open accounts in your name, and start moving money.”
This stolen identity pipeline feeds into elaborate fraud schemes, from money laundering to account takeovers.
The First Line of Defense: Onboarding
The initial stage, account opening, is where most fraud attempts happen, and where compliance teams are strongest.
“At onboarding, stopping fake documents is relatively easier,” Gunias says. “We have tech that detects fake IDs, and trained humans who spot red flags.”
But onboarding is only the first battle. The tougher fight is against fraudsters who manage to get in.
The Second Battle: When Fraudsters Are Already Inside
Some criminals use real IDs to pass checks. Then, once their accounts are live, they start routing illegal funds.“That’s much harder to detect,” Gunias notes. “They’re already in the system.”
These users start with small, harmless-looking transactions. The moment greed kicks in, larger transfers, higher frequency, they trigger risk rules. “When those patterns show up, we investigate, gather more evidence, and shut the activity down.”
The Change Nigeria Needs: A Shift in Mindset
When asked what would make Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem safer, Gunias doesn’t cite new laws or more tech.
He points to a mindset shift. “To protect you, we must know who you are,” he says. “We’re not collecting your data to spy on you or sell it. We need it to protect both you and the company.”
Compliance, he insists, is misunderstood. “People think we’re a shadow group spying on customers. In truth, we’re protecting them from fraud they never even see.”
