According to Niki, digital fraud has evolved into a global criminal ecosystem. He illustrated how a single compromised device can trigger a chain of fraud, from malware hijacking banking sessions to stolen funds being routed through mule accounts before being moved offshore. As fraud increasingly targets customer devices, conventional authentication methods such as passwords and one-time passwords (OTPs) have become more vulnerable. Once a device is compromised, fraudsters can intercept OTPs, hijack authenticated sessions, and impersonate legitimate users.

Niki added that financial institutions need to move beyond passwords and OTPs. Passwordless authentication verifies a customer's identity through a trusted device and biometric authentication, rather than codes that can be stolen or intercepted, making it significantly harder for fraudsters to take over accounts.

"Authentication should not be treated as a one-time event. We need continuous authentication throughout the session to prevent advanced attacks such as session hijacking," said Niki.

As part of the keynote, Niki presented a production implementation at one of Malaysia's leading digital banks, demonstrating how passwordless authentication can secure the customer journey, from digital onboarding and customer logins to high-risk transactions and account recovery. By replacing passwords and OTPs with device-bound credentials and biometric authentication, financial institutions can strengthen fraud prevention while delivering a seamless customer experience.

"There doesn't have to be a trade-off between security and user experience. With the right authentication architecture, financial institutions can deliver both," Niki emphasized.

For more information, visit www.vida.id.

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About VIDA

VIDA is licensed Certification Authority (CA) registered under the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. Founded in 2018, VIDA provides digital identity services that integrate electronic certificates, digital signatures, identity verification, and transaction authentication, all adhering to world-class security standards, including Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and biometric verification.

Founder and CEO of VIDA, Niki Luhur, shared this during the panel session "How Cybercriminals Target Fintech and What's Next." He highlighted how fraud has scaled across the region, from industrialized scam compounds to cross-border syndicates spanning Myanmar, Thailand, and Indonesia. In one case, authorities in Myanmar seized $12 billion in Bitcoin, underscoring the scale of these operations.

"Cybercrime is democratic, they don't care what size institution you are. They just scan for vulnerabilities. All the doors that are open, they exploit them," said Niki Luhur.

This industrialized scale is made possible by one thing: Systematic exploitation of weak points across digital systems. Rather than targeting specific institutions, cybercriminals focus on vulnerabilities that can be replicated and scaled across platforms.

Niki emphasized that while attention is on deepfakes, the real threat lies deeper in the attack chain, particularly in injection attacks. "Deepfakes get the buzz, but the door is an injection attack. The majority come from virtual cameras on compromised devices," he added.

His solution is clear: layered defense requiring three simultaneous verifications; the person (biometrics), their identity (against government databases), and the device. This approach addresses the infrastructure gap where KYC and authentication systems remain siloed across financial institutions.

Alongside its presence at the conference, VIDA is also launching ID FraudShield, a new fraud detection solution built for threats that traditional biometric checks can no longer stop. ID Fraud Shield combines biometric liveness with device intelligence, behavioral analytics, network detection, and rule-based fraud evaluation, all delivered in parallel through one SDK. It's designed for one purpose: catching the fraud that liveness alone misses.

About VIDA

VIDA is licensed Certification Authority (CA) registered under the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. Founded in 2018, VIDA provides digital identity services that integrate electronic certificates, digital signatures, identity verification, and transaction authentication, all adhering to world-class security standards, including Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and biometric verification. VIDA verifies more than 2.5 million identities every day. For more information, visit www.vida.id 

In his presentation, "From Fraudster to Syndicate: The Rise of Commercial Fraud in Southeast Asia," Niki detailed how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fundamentally reshaping the digital crime economy, automating and scaling fraud into a structured, industrialized threat. "Fraud today is no longer about individuals seeking quick profits; it has become a business," said Niki Luhur. "When crime operates like an industry, security cannot rely on assumptions built for a different era."

This message resonates with CISOs, as AI-powered threats like deepfake attacks and synthetic identity fraud erode traditional security models. And in line with Bank Negara Malaysia's (BNM) decision to phase out SMS OTPs by June 2026, which underscores the inadequacy of legacy authentication and requires a fundamental redesign of defense strategies for banking leaders.

Niki emphasized layered and coordinated identity defense. Effective fraud prevention requires unifying identity verification, device integrity checks, liveness detection, and PKI authentication into a cohesive system that can withstand large-scale AI-based attacks. Device trust is now a critical frontline control. For more information, visit www.vida.id

About VIDA

VIDA is a leading company in Indonesia in the field of digital identity and fraud prevention, licensed Certification Authority (CA) registered under the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. Founded in 2018, VIDA provides digital identity services that integrate electronic certificates, digital signatures, identity verification, and transaction authentication, all adhering to world-class security standards, including Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and biometric verification. VIDA verifies more than 2.5 million identities every day. For more information, visit www.vida.id