A recent review by Eesti Pank found that there were more than four times as many bank card frauds in Estonia last year as there were frauds with credit transfers like transfers through online banks or mobile apps. The amounts lost through credit transfer fraud are however very large, as the average amount lost by an individual victim was 1500 euros, while only 125 euros was lost in the average card fraud incident. It is important to be careful when making payments, because the losses from the large majority of fraud cases must be borne by the victim.

The total amount lost to payment fraud in 2024 was 13.5 million euros, which was 4% more than in 2023, while the total number of incidents of fraud increased by around 14% to 30,600. There were 18 victims of card fraud per thousand residents of Estonia last year, which was three more per thousand than in 2023. The number of victims of credit transfer fraud has held steady in recent years at four people per thousand. These frauds are mostly committed with payments initiated in online banks or mobile apps.

The main emphasis in scams is on manipulating people

The biggest dangers with card payments are encountered in online stores abroad, and it is vital to take great care when making transfers through an online bank or payment app to an unknown person or company. The primary danger with credit transfers comes from manipulation of the victim as people are persuaded to make transfers to the scammer’s account or to reveal their PIN codes. Consequently 89% of such frauds are authenticated by the victim themselves or by the scammer. Theft of card data is an issue alongside manipulation in card frauds, and 56% of card frauds are authenticated.

A large jump in frauds with cash withdrawal

There was a sharp increase within total frauds in various scams surrounding withdrawals of cash. These generally work by obtaining a physical card with its PIN code, or by using cash couriers. The courier scammers arrive at a person’s home to collect to collect the cash, pretending to be calling officially or applying emotional pressure. Such scams took 50,000 euros in 2023, but in 2024 that amount had increased to around 900,000 euros.

Examples of current scams

The most common scams of late have concerned the Estonian Health Insurance Fund Tervisekassa, deliveries of parcels, and cash couriers. Calls purporting to be from Tervisekassa offer benefits to the victim and are used to obtain the Smart-ID or mobile-ID codes of the victim. Fraudulent messages apparently from parcel delivery firms request card data for the delivery of parcels. Cash courier scams are also widespread. The police have warned that anyone can be the victim of a scam and that the scammers speak fluent Estonian. The Estonian Banking Association says that scammers focus particular attention on individuals who have a connection to a business through its bookkeeping or management, so that they can access the accounts of both the individual and the company. Scams are common where the scammer claims to work for a bank, the police or some other official body, and the victim receives calls from several different people to make them easier to convince.

The average loss and liability

The most common frauds are card frauds, but the largest losses are suffered by victims of credit transfer fraud. The average amount taken in a card fraud incident was 125 euros in 2024, but the average amount lost by private individuals in credit transfer scams was 1500 euros. The bank client has to bear the loss in most cases if they have confirmed the payment under pressure from the scammer or shared their data. Losses were borne by the client in 98% of cases of credit transfer fraud last year and in 75% of cases of card fraud.

Solutions are offered by technology and awareness

The amount of attempted fraud is extraordinarily large, but the majority of attempts do not connect with a victim because mobile operators block more than a million scam calls each week for example. The banks and the police are working constantly to block scams and to deal with their consequences. The Estonian Payment Forum started operating a round table for combating financial fraud in 2025 that brings together institutions from the public and private sectors. The main purpose of the round table is to produce and execute an action plan for combating fraud, make proposals for legislative changes, and share information between all the participants. The Ministry of Finance is responsible for the action plan, and the meetings of the round table are chaired by Eesti Pank.

The main message of the review of payment fraud is that the key link in the chain is the individual facing the fraud. 

The report on payment fraud can be found on the Eesti Pank website in Estonian only

Additional information:
Viljar Rääsk
Head of Communications
Eesti Pank
6680 745, 5275 055
Email: [email protected]
Press enquiries: [email protected]