Fraud is no longer confined to checkout. As digital commerce expands, attackers are increasingly targeting accounts earlier in the customer journey, creating new challenges for fraud, risk, and trust teams. The Q1 2026 Digital Trust Index provides a comprehensive look at how fraud is evolving across payment fraud, account takeover, authentication, and consumer behavior. Drawing on insights from the Sift Global Data Network and consumer research, the report helps organizations understand where fraud pressure is increasing, how security expectations are changing, and how to benchmark performance across the full customer lifecycle.
In this report, you’ll learn:
• How fraud is shifting upstream from transactions into account takeover and stored value abuse
• Key trends shaping payment fraud, authentication, and consumer trust
• How fraud exposure varies across industries, platforms, and payment methods
• Why authentication strategy plays a growing role in balancing security and customer experience
• How fraud impacts conversion, loyalty, and long-term customer relationships
• Practical approaches to benchmarking fraud performance across the customer lifecycle
• Where hidden gaps may exist between fraud controls and evolving attack patterns
