Fraud doesn’t slow down when the weather warms up. In fact, our August 2025 data shows that summer spending patterns create ripe opportunities for fraudsters – and they’re quick to exploit them.

Leveraging data from Rippleshot’s proprietary consortium – over 5,000 financial institutions and 50M+ daily card transactions – we identified three categories where fraud is growing fastest.

1. Travel Agencies & Tour Operators (MCC 4722)

As peak travel season rolled in, legitimate travel spending increased a modest +6.61%, but fraud in this category surged +58.17%. That’s nearly nine times faster than spending. The high-ticket, low-verification nature of many travel purchases – especially prepaid packages and international bookings – gives fraudsters room to operate.

2. Miscellaneous General Merchandise Stores (MCC 5399)‍

Here’s where the numbers get especially telling: consumer spend dipped slightly (-1.69%), yet fraud more than doubled (+112.61%). This indicates targeted fraud against merchants with high-resale inventory like gift cards and electronics. These goods are easily liquidated for quick cash, making them a perennial fraud favorite.

3. Amusement Parks & Carnivals (MCC 7996)‍

Attendance and spending soared in August (+30.90%), but fraud grew nearly four times as fast (+120.71%). Online ticketing systems, same-day bulk purchases, and resale markets present an open door for fraudsters.

Strategic Recommendations from Rippleshot:

• Tighten Controls for Seasonal MCCs: Layer defenses with card-not-present checks, merchant-specific monitoring, and verification for high-value purchases.
• Pair Merchant & Card-Level Monitoring: Combine suspicious merchant activity with at-risk card behavior to prioritize intervention.
• Increase Card-Not-Present Safeguards: Deploy one-time passcodes or behavioral analytics to protect legitimate transactions while blocking fraud.
• Monitor High-Resale MCCs Aggressively: Stay alert to categories with goods that can be quickly converted to cash or credits.

‍

Fraud is evolving – but with proactive detection and strategic rule writing, financial institutions can move faster.

‍

Get the full August 2025 Fraud Intelligence Report to see the data visualizations, category breakdowns, and deeper analysis.

‍