Fraud Trends in Global Travel 2025: What Airlines and OTAs Need to Know

Fraud Trends in Global Travel 2025: What Airlines and OTAs Need to Know

Travel is back — and so is fraud. After a strong rebound in global bookings, airlines, OTAs, and travel merchants are facing a surge of sophisticated attacks. Fraudsters are adapting to new technologies and customer behaviors, exploiting every gap from checkout to loyalty programs.

In 2025, fraud in travel won’t just be about stolen credit cards. It will be multi-front, automated, and deeply embedded in customer journeys. To stay ahead, travel companies need to understand the trends shaping this new reality — and why traditional fraud tools aren’t enough anymore.

Trend 1: Multi-Front Fraud Becomes the Norm

Fraudsters no longer rely on a single tactic. Instead, they combine multiple attack vectors in one customer journey:

Carding + Bot Attacks: Automated bots test stolen card numbers at scale through flight booking engines.
Refund Abuse: Fraudsters exploit flexible airline policies to claim refunds for flights they never intended to take.
Account Takeover (ATO): Loyalty accounts are compromised and drained of miles, often resold in underground markets.

This “multi-front” approach overwhelms legacy fraud filters designed to stop only one type of fraud at a time.

Trend 2: Last-Minute and Cross-Border Risks Intensify

Last-minute ticket purchases and cross-border bookings remain the riskiest segments for airlines and OTAs. Fraudsters exploit urgency and international complexity to bypass traditional checks.

Example: A customer books a flight from Brazil to Europe within 24 hours of departure. Traditional fraud tools may decline the transaction, but with continuous post-payment monitoring, airlines can track signals until boarding to confirm legitimacy.

In 2025, ignoring this segment means leaving billions in legitimate sales on the table.

Trend 3: Loyalty Fraud Goes Mainstream

Frequent flyer programs are among the most profitable parts of airline business models — and criminals know it. Expect to see:

Large-scale credential stuffing attacks on loyalty accounts.
Synthetic identities created to accumulate welcome bonuses.
Fraud rings reselling stolen miles as discounted travel deals.

The cost isn’t just financial. Loyalty fraud erodes customer trust and damages long-term brand equity.

Trend 4: Friendly Fraud Becomes More Sophisticated

Travel is particularly vulnerable to “friendly fraud,” where customers dispute charges after actually receiving the service.

A passenger flies, then claims they never booked the ticket.
An OTA customer denies a hotel reservation to avoid payment.

Without strong evidence trails, merchants often lose these disputes. In 2025, automated evidence collection (emails, check-in data, device fingerprints, support interactions) will be essential to fight back.

Trend 5: Regulation and Customer Expectations Converge

Travel companies are under pressure from both regulators and customers:

Regulations: PSD2 in Europe, PCI DSS standards, and evolving data privacy laws demand more robust verification.
Customers: Expect seamless, frictionless booking — no unnecessary hurdles.

This creates a paradox: increase security without adding friction. Only multi-tier, post-payment fraud prevention can satisfy both sides.

Trend 6: False Declines Are Your Low-Hanging Fruit

For airlines, fraud prevention is not just about blocking fraudsters — it’s about making sure legitimate passengers can book and board without friction. Every false decline is lost ticket revenue today and lost passenger loyalty tomorrow. False positives are often more damaging than fraud itself because they undermine trust at the exact moment of purchase.

When asked how they manage this trade-off, the industry is split:

36% of airlines prefer to block aggressively, even if it means rejecting legitimate customers.
11% prefer to allow more passengers through, accepting some fraud risk.
A majority, 53%, now choose a balance through dynamic friction — applying additional checks only when risk signals demand it.

But dynamic friction alone is not enough. The real breakthrough comes from decoupling payment acceptance from verification: letting passengers book instantly, while continuing to monitor and verify risk post-payment, right up until boarding.

The paradox is clear:

Regulators demand stricter verification (PSD2 in Europe, PCI DSS, evolving data privacy laws).
Passengers expect seamless booking with no unnecessary hurdles.

Meanwhile, fraud-related losses in the airline industry now average over $11M annually per company, with 37% citing compliance costs and nearly 40% citing passenger dissatisfaction and churn as their most damaging pain points.

False declines are therefore the lowest-hanging fruit for revenue recovery. With multi-tier, post-payment fraud prevention, airlines can finally resolve the paradox: maximize approvals, stay compliant, and keep passengers flying with confidence.

Why Traditional Tools Won’t Be Enough

Legacy fraud tools stop at checkout. They rely on static rules and front-loaded verification, which often means either blocking good customers or letting fraud slip through. In 2025, this approach will be outdated.

The future lies in continuous, post-payment risk analysis — monitoring transactions after authorization, until fulfillment, and even post-travel for disputes.

Conclusion

Fraud in global travel is evolving fast. From multi-front attacks to loyalty program abuse, the risks in 2025 will demand more than static filters and one-time checks. Airlines, OTAs, and travel merchants must adopt multi-tier, post-payment fraud prevention to stay ahead.

With FUGU, every payment counts — and every traveler can move through the journey securely and seamlessly.

→ Want to learn how FUGU protects airlines and travel merchants in 2025? [Contact us today].