Brazil identity fraud involves 3.6 million faces

Identity fraud in Brazil has reached a significant scale, with over 3.6 million faces now associated with attempted fraud, according to data from the IDTech company CertiFace. This figure represents a 20% increase since May 2026, based on an analysis of the company’s database of 140 million faces.

Financial institutions are primary targets, with fraudulent activities often involving the opening of fake accounts or the unauthorized contracting of services in the names of third parties. To combat these digital crimes, such as phishing and data leaks, companies are increasingly adopting facial biometrics and liveness detection technology.

Liveness detection systems verify that a person is physically present in real-time by analyzing depth, reflections, and micro-movements of the face. This prevents criminals from using photos, videos, or screen recordings to bypass security. When a face is flagged during a verification attempt, it is recorded as a restricted face, creating a collective security memory that helps institutions recognize and block subsequent high-risk operations.