According to the National Bank of Ukraine, the situation regarding payment card fraud in 2025 shows mixed trends: the number of fraudulent transactions has decreased, but the total amount of losses has risen significantly.
Key indicators for 2025
According to the NBU report, the total number of illegal transactions involving payment cards fell to 256,000, which is 5% (or 13,300) fewer than in 2024. The frequency of fraud also decreased: there were 27 illegal transactions per million spending transactions, which is 14% fewer than the previous year.
At the same time, the amount of losses increased by 24%, reaching UAH 1.4 billion. This negative trend is due to a sharp increase in the average amount of a single fraudulent transaction—it rose by 30% to UAH 5,536 (in 2024—UAH 4,247).
According to the regulator, the decrease in the number of incidents indicates the effectiveness of measures taken by payment service providers (in particular, the implementation of enhanced authentication) and the improvement in financial literacy among many customers. However, the increase in the average amount of losses indicates that citizens who do fall into the traps set by fraudsters suffer significantly greater financial losses due to their own carelessness.
Where do crimes occur?
The NBU notes that the vast majority of fraud cases continue to occur online.
83% of all fraudulent transactions were carried out online.
17% occurred on physical devices (ATMs, POS terminals, etc.).
At the same time, there is a trend toward larger-scale crimes online: the average amount of an illegal online transaction increased by 27% to 6,043 UAH.
Social engineering—the main threat
The National Bank emphasizes that 90% of the total losses in 2025 were caused by social engineering. Fraudsters continue to manipulate customers, luring them into revealing confidential information: card details, one-time verification codes, and online banking usernames and passwords.
The most common scams (according to the NBU):
Fake benefits: messages about social benefit payments that lead to phishing websites.
“Security service”: calls from fake bank or NBU employees aiming to obtain information to “unlock an account.”
Easy money: tasks on social media that later turn into requests to transfer funds or purchase goods.
Financial number theft: luring out SIM card access codes (often through eSIM creation) to gain control over banking apps.
Fraud involving Ukrainians’ phone numbers abroad: Attackers use phone numbers that customers haven’t used for a long time, allowing carriers to reissue the SIM card to the fraudster and gain access to financial accounts.
National Bank Security Recommendations
To protect your funds, the NBU strongly recommends:
Never disclose: your card number, expiration date, CVV code, online banking passwords, or any one-time codes received via SMS.
Be cautious: do not click on suspicious links in messaging apps, social media, or emails.
Protect your financial information: link your SIM card to your passport details with your mobile carrier and enable additional security services.
Act immediately: if your card is stolen, your phone is lost, or you suspect fraud—immediately block your account through the bank’s customer service and contact the Cyber Police.
