Satire Speaks Truth: Fraud Technology Overhype vs. Real Innovation in Check Fraud Detection
- Frank McKenna presents an AI company too good to be true
- Alas, it was published on April Fool's Day
- The post is a reminder not to fall for "pie-in-the-sky" solutions
Frank McKenna, author of the ever-entertaining Frank on Fraud blog, posted on April 1, 2025, about Fraudinator.com -- a new AI company that promises to "eliminate fraud analysts forever" with its "Thrice Enabled Fraud Detection" system. The post included cameos from Karisse Hendrik, Founder of the Fraudology podcast, and Hailey Windham, Fraud Ops Manager at Mission Omega.
Did we mention that the post and Fraudinator.com press release are both dated dated April 1? (Our Marketing Manager James Bi was fooled!)
The post made some bold claims:
According to Fraudinator, their next-gen solution deploys a triple-layered defense matrix that doesn't just stop fraud – it pulverizes it at the quantum level, rendering human fraud analysts completely obsolete while maintaining zero false positives and 100% transparency and explainability.
While this post is meant to be an April Fool's joke, with a short video and website that appears more like a first-person shooter (FPS) video game fan site, there is a legitimate underlying message that needs to be addressed: Fraud technology overhype.
Check Fraud Technology Overhype vs. Reality
With the surge in check fraud over the past half decade, we've seen many companies jump on the bandwagon. Many of these fintechs were already within the fraud industry but saw the trends and strategically moved into check fraud detection. In fact, according to a report from Datos Insights, "the check fraud solution market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 20%" and is estimated to reach $1B market cap in 2028.
Financial institutions, however, need to be cautious about believing the "hype" from new entrants into the market. Remember, there is no single technology that can detect a majority of check fraud.
Check fraud is full of nuance; defeating it requires several different technologies targeting specific aspects of check fraud. This includes everything from monitoring account transactions and behaviors to analyzing the images of checks. Many new entrants into the field will try and sell you the latest "innovation," but will not actually achieve some of the lofty claims being made.
Additionally, technology can only do so much. FIs need to employ a department of knowledgeable fraud analysts that can analyze all the risks scores produced by different systems to make the final determination whether a check transaction is fraudulent or not.
As fraud leaders at financial institutions continue to improve their check fraud detection strategies, it's important that they do not fall for the hype. Instead, the best move is to partner with companies like OrboGraph, which comes equipped with an established and proven track record of innovation.