Over the past three years the Italians have changed their way of paying. Covid-19 has influenced i digital paymentspushing millions of people to use cards, online wire transfers and apps for daily payments. An enormous change, which led to unprecedented growth of the digital and contactless operations. These data emerge from a study published by Fabi (Italian Banking Autonomous Federation).
However, this digital convenience hides a dark side. Always according to Fabi’s analysis, from 2022 to 2024 i computer crimes Linked to digital payments have made over 559 million euros disappear from the pockets of the Italians. Online scams, bank fraud and increasingly sophisticated techniques based on artificial intelligence and social networks are now on the agenda. Let’s see what is happening in detail.
Over half a billion stolen “from digital thieves” in three years
Fabi data photograph the last period between 2022 and 2024. In just three years digital criminals have stolen from Italians beyond 559 million euros. Entering in detail, online fraud (false purchases, phishing, scams on digital investments) increased by 58%, going from 114.4 million euros in 2022 to 181 million in 2024.
The “pure” computer fraud, such as those related to the direct hacking of bank accounts, while representing a minor share, even if in any case increased by 25%reaching around 14 million euros in 2024. Adding these data, the total figure of the subtracted sums increased by 30% in the last year alone. In short, online crime also grows alongside digital payments.
| Year | Online scams (€) | Computer fraud (€) | Total (€) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 114.459.014 | 38.506,316 | 152.965.330 |
| 2023 | 137.202.592 | 40.151.375 | 177.353.967 |
| 2024 | 181,006.846 | 48.117.336 | 229.124.182 |
| Total | 432.668.452 | 126.775.027 | 559.443.479 |
Computer fraud and online +30%: what are the new threats
As stated in the study, in 2024 there was a record growth (+30%) of digital fraud compared to the previous year. The tools used by criminals have evolved quickly, thanks above all to new technologies. Fabi explicitly speaks of the increasingly sophisticated use of artificial intelligence, capable of Create audio and video deepfake convincing, often used to falsify the identities of reliable people or institutions.
Among the most common means used to defraud citizens, there are WhatsApp and other various messaging apps, with messages that seem sent by their bank and ask for sensitive data or invite you to click on fraudulent links. A dangerous and difficult mode to identify promptly, which often affects little experienced or simply distracted users.
More and more payments without cash from 2020 to today
Data that, as we have anticipated, also depend on the increase in the use of digital payments. From 2020 onwards, in fact, the number and value of online payments have literally exploded. According to the study, the Italians have more than transactions doubled carried out with debit cards (such as the ATM). In detail, it has gone from 2.1 billion transactions of 2020 a About 4.8 billion in 2024with a total increase of 132%.
| Year | Payment value (millions of euros) | Payments number (thousands of units) |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 139,668 | 2,608,083 |
| 2021 | 164.707 | 3.297.862 |
| 2022 | 202.299 | 4.226.604 |
| 2023 | 237,479 | 5.198.804 |
| 2024 | 259,355 | 6.053.981 |
| Variation 2020-2024 | +85.7% (119,687 million) | +132.1% (3,445,898 thousand) |
| Variation 2023-2024 | +9.21% (21,876 million) | +16.45% (855,177 thousand) |
Contactless has played a central role in this process: the convenience of paying small amounts by simply approaching the card to POS has helped to change the habits of daily consumption. Today even a simple coffee or a bus ticket are increasingly paid without cash.
Bonifications are growing: 18 thousand billion reached
But it is not only small payments that have become digital. According to Fabi, I also bank transfersused for transactions of higher amounts and recurring payments (rentals, mortgages, salaries, bills), recorded record numbers. In 2024, the total of the transfers made by the Italians reached the figure of about 18,000 billion euroswith an increase of 55.2% compared to 2020 (when the figure was equal to 11,300 billion).
Almost 40 thousand ATMs in Italy
Despite the strong growth of digital payments, however, in Italy the ATMs ATMs (ATM). Currently in Italy there are about 40 thousand branches, of which over 29,500 multifunction, that is, capable of offering different types of operations and services.
The real novelty are in fact the “advanced” ATMs, which allow not only the withdrawal, but also payments, payments, wire transfers, top -ups and many other banking operations, often without even inserting physical paper thanks to NFC (Near Field Communication) technology.
