All posts by Andy.Monte@experian.com

Experian’s latest research shows that while 83% of U.S. consumers expect companies to address security and privacy concerns, branded retail sites have some of the widest trust gaps, more than a 30% difference between expectation and reality. This disconnect isn’t just theoretical; it drives real-world consequences like cart abandonment, dispute escalation and reputational damage. Online fraud is amplifying this erosion of consumer confidence. Identity theft and stolen credit card information remain top concerns for consumers, and when those fears materialize, the impact can be significant. A Mastercard study found that 91% of consumers would consider not doing business with a company again after experiencing fraud. For merchants, this isn’t just a customer experience issue; it’s a financial and operational crisis. Two-thirds of merchants report year-over-year increases in fraud losses, with account takeover and transactional payment fraud topping their list of stressors. Every dispute becomes a trust event, and when trust is damaged, chargebacks rise, fees climb and merchants risk being classified as high-risk, a label that can increase transaction costs and damage long-term profitability. “In today’s digital commerce landscape, trust isn’t just important. It’s the foundation of every successful interaction between consumers and merchants. As threats become increasingly sophisticated, it’s essential for businesses to make protecting consumer trust their top priority.”Dennis Gamiello, Executive Vice President of Identity, Mastercard One of the most visible symptoms of this trust gap is the surge in guest checkout. Consumers increasingly choose speed and privacy over account creation. 43% of consumers prefer guest checkouts, and 72% still use it even when they already have an account. While this behavior signals a desire for frictionless experiences with less data, it creates a challenge for merchants: fewer data insights make fraud harder to detect, so the most seamless checkouts aren’t always the most secure. Striking a balance between speed and security is key in today’s e-commerce landscape. “When there’s limited context and no persistent relationship, trust has to be established in real time. That exposes the limits of static credentials. Identity intelligence must lead, continuously assessing who’s behind the interaction and whether they can be confidently authenticated before the transaction completes. Payment tokenization, biometric authentication and tools like Click to Pay also reduce manual entry of sensitive data and reinforce security and convenience.”Dennis Gamiello, Executive Vice President of Identity, Mastercard The solution isn’t to force account creation; it’s to rethink security. Consumers want protection they can trust, but don’t want those security methods to slow down their digital experiences. Invisible security measures, such as behavioral analytics and passive identity verification, enable merchants to secure transactions without slowing them down. Our recently released report shows that half of merchants now use secondary devices to verify identity, signaling a shift toward frictionless security. Behavioral biometrics rank among the most trusted authentication methods, yet adoption remains slow. “Security today means investing in invisible tools consumers expect merchants to have, solutions that detect signals almost impossible to spoof. These capabilities are critical for addressing top concerns like identity theft and stolen credit card abuse. They allow merchants to protect trust without adding friction.”Nash Ali, Vice President of Operational Strategy, Experian What does that mean in practice? It means ensuring the purchaser truly owns the identity data and payment method they provide. Advanced fraud detection layers behavioral, device and network intelligence atop rich identity verification tools, like Mastercard’s Identity Insights via Experian’s orchestration platform, and payment ownership verification data to spot anomalies in real time, even at guest checkout. “By analyzing interaction patterns such as typing cadence, hesitation, and copy-paste behavior, merchants can distinguish genuine users from bots or synthetic identities without collecting personal information. And with passive card verification, merchants can confirm card ownership instantly, reducing false declines and preventing fraud, all while preserving privacy and speed.”Jose Pallares, Senior Director of Payments and E-commerce products, Experian Building trust isn’t just meeting expectations; it’s anticipating threats and investing in technologies that make fraud detection seamless and invisible. For merchants, this isn’t only about reducing fraud; it’s about avoiding the downstream costs of disputes and chargebacks that erode margins and operational efficiency. First-party fraud is contributing to an increase in disputes, which can affect financial performance and customer trust. As we move into part two, we’ll explore why these challenges are escalating, how they impact merchant profitability, and what proactive strategies, from dispute intelligence to enhancing transaction clarity, can help businesses fight back and protect trust at scale. Learn more Coming soon: Part two: Fighting back against first-party fraud – from chargebacks to checkout safeguards

Trigger leads have long been the preferred solution for identifying high-intent mortgage borrowers. But with the implementation of the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act (HPPA), which introduces new limitations and consumer protections around trigger leads, that playbook will need to shift. Now, lenders are quickly facing a pivotal shift in how they discover, engage, and convert prospective borrowers into customers. The industry now stands at a crossroads. Lenders who adapt early—leaning into predictive tools, consent-based engagement, and smarter prescreening—will redefine borrower acquisition in a more privacy-centric era.  HPPA: A structural change to mortgage marketing  The HPPA amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act by significantly restricting the use of mortgage inquiries for prescreen purposes. As of March 5, 2026, credit bureaus may only provide or utilize mortgage inquiries to:  End users with explicit borrower consent  The originator of the consumer’s current mortgage  The servicer of the consumer’s current mortgage  An insured depository institution or credit union where the consumer has an existing account  While these exemptions may provide continuity for banks and credit unions, many mortgage brokers and nonbank lenders will need to overhaul their prescreen practices—or risk being cut off entirely from a previously high-performing acquisition channel.  Why this isn’t just a compliance shift—It’s a strategic recalibration  Mortgage triggers in prescreen allow lenders to react instantly to consumer intent. Lenders rely on a prompt and convincing narrative to entice applicants to switch lenders. Mortgage inquiry triggers are effective and were, therefore, a prospecting strategy for many lenders. Recent legislative changes significantly restrict the availability of these inquiry triggers, and impacted lenders are focusing on a more intentional prospecting strategy to compete.   Without these mortgage triggers in prescreen, lenders need to ask:  Who are we trying to reach?  What early signals can we act on?  How do we earn permission and attention before a mortgage inquiry ever happens?  Transforming the funnel: From reaction to anticipation  The shift in mortgage inquiry-based prescreen isn’t the end of high-intent lead targeting. It’s the beginning of a more strategic and intentional approach—one that leverages earlier indicators of mortgage readiness and focuses on building relationships, not just closing transactions.  Here’s where the momentum is evolving, creating a new and smarter funnel:  Prescreen marketing: Using credit and behavioral attributes to help identify consumers who meet specific lending criteria before they signal active intent.  Predictive modeling: Leveraging propensity scores or custom models to prioritize outreach based on conversion likelihood.  Consent-based engagement: Implementing compliant mechanisms to capture and manage borrower opt-ins at scale.  The power of predictive modeling  According to recent industry interviews, propensity modeling is emerging as one of the most effective replacements for trigger-based prescreen. These models analyze hundreds of credit attributes—such as utilization, account mix, account age, and depth—to help identify consumers statistically more likely to seek a mortgage.  For lenders just beginning to use predictive modeling, off-the-shelf models can be a quick way to identify potential borrowers. For example, when layering propensity scores on top of credit eligibility, which can improve borrower targeting, many lenders see an increase in open mortgage loan rates.  Meanwhile, custom-built models, which analyze a lender’s own campaign performance over time, offer the highest level of precise targeting. These models isolate the attributes most predictive of conversions within a specific product mix—optimizing not just volume, but fit.  Speed without traditional triggers? It’s possible  One of the biggest concerns among lenders is maintaining the speed historically enabled by trigger leads. But that concern may be overblown.  Self-service prescreen platforms now allow marketers to generate qualified lead lists in as little as 24 hours, enabling rapid response during rate drops, competitive shifts, or seasonal demand spikes.   For those new to prescreening, batch campaigns still offer value, especially with analyst support.   Don’t overlook retention  In an era of intense acquisition competition, retention becomes a key differentiator.  Lenders who monitor property status, cash flow, and consumer credit behavior can proactively identify when an existing borrower is likely to list, refinance, or exit. Armed with that intelligence, lenders can re-engage with the borrower at the right moment—sometimes before a competitor is considered or contacted.  This level of behavioral intelligence may soon separate proactive lenders from reactive ones.  Actions instead of reactions  The evolution of trigger-based prescreen doesn’t just require new tools; it demands new thinking. Lenders should begin by auditing their current pipelines and determining:  What percentage of our acquisition is dependent on triggers?  What share of our book falls under the HPPA exemptions?  How will we scale compliant opt-in collection?  Are our current prescreen or modeling capabilities future-ready?  Those who answer these questions today—and act on them—won’t just be in compliance with the new laws, they’ll lead in a transformed market. Lenders should also be asking:   Do we have the infrastructure to collect and act on borrower consent?  Are our acquisition teams equipped to run prescreen campaigns — both batch and self-service?  What predictive models are we using (or could we use) to prioritize leads?  Are we proactively monitoring our portfolio to catch retention risks early?  How are we preparing our sales teams for longer, more consultative buying journeys?  Conclusion  The HPPA signals a shift away from relying on passive, inquiry-based prescreen acquisition and the beginning of smarter, more strategic engagement with potential borrowers. Lenders who embrace this transition early will find themselves not just compliant, but competitive—with deeper borrower insights, better conversion rates, and stronger long-term customer relationships.  The market is moving. The only question is: will you lead the change or chase it?  Citation  Experian. (2025, November). Interview: How the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act is reshaping mortgage marketing—and what lenders should do now [transcript]. Experian Mortgage Insights. Insights based on lender feedback, campaign performance data, and analysis of prescreen marketing strategies and predictive modeling outcomes were gathered from Experian client engagements and internal mortgage analytics between May and October 2025. Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act timeline and legal context referenced from legislation signed September 5, 2025, with implementation beginning March 5, 2026.   

When an employee's identity is stolen, the damage rarely stays contained to their personal life. It spills into the workplace, quietly, persistently and at real cost to employers. Identity theft triggers a cascade of financial consequences that employees are seldom equipped to handle. These include damaged credit scores, unauthorized accounts and unexpected debt. According to a recent report, identity fraud victims report an average loss of 200 hours when resolving fraud-related issues. This time is primarily consumed during business hours on calls to banks, credit bureaus and government agencies. Attention fragments. Focus deteriorates. Anxiety compounds. And because the financial consequences can drag on for months or even years, so does the distraction. This is what makes identity theft a workforce issue that impacts productivity and the bottom line, not just a personal one. For employee benefit brokers advising employers on benefits strategy, understanding this dynamic is critical. Brokers have an opportunity to reframe identity theft protection as a financial wellness solution that serves employees and employers alike, rather than simply positioning it as a cyber product. Compounding the financial stress of employees Even before fraud enters the picture, employee financial stress is one of the most significant and underappreciated drains on organizational performance. One study found that 62% of employees report that moderate-to-severe financial stress affects their productivity, with three out of four saying it affects their work motivation. Another study found that 84% of employees reported that financial stress left them exhausted and burned out. For employees already under financial stress, when fraud hits, the problem is compounded dramatically and the workplace ends up absorbing the cost.  These factors have changed how employees view employer benefits. In the past, a paycheck, basic health insurance, and a retirement plan were the benchmark for attracting employees. That threshold has moved. Today, 84% of employees feel their employer should be more actively involved in helping them navigate financial challenges.And 87% of workers say they would consider leaving an organization that doesn't prioritize their overall well-being. Employees are looking to their employers for help with financial stress, underscoring the importance of offering financial wellness programs that address these pressing concerns. For brokers, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. Offering identity theft solutions strictly as cyber products misses the bigger picture. There is an opportunity to position identity theft tools within a more comprehensive, integrated financial wellness program that addresses employees’ concerns about financial security and well-being. When employers offer benefits that proactively address employee concerns, they reduce distractions caused by financial stress, thereby improving productivity. The added advantage of a benefits package that includes a financial wellness program is the ability to be more competitive in attracting new talent while retaining existing employees, thus reducing churn.  These benefits are hard for employers to ignore. Why financial wellness programs are effective Employee benefit brokers are well-positioned to explain to employers why financial protection for employees shouldn’t be limited to a single product or a monitoring alert but instead is more effective when part of a complete solution. A financial wellness program can provide the credit education employees need. For many employees, credit remains one of the most misunderstood forces shaping their financial lives, affecting their ability to qualify for loans, secure housing, lease a vehicle or even pass background checks for certain jobs. Credit education tools that provide real-time monitoring, personalized guidance and interactive learning resources help employees understand what's happening with their credit, why it matters and what they can do about it. The results of this type of education can be striking. Research shows that one in three users with scores below 800 move up a full credit band within 12 months of enrolling in credit tools. Employee financial wellness programs go beyond education. They provide employees with the tools to actively manage budgets, build savings, reduce debt and track their progress over time. Personalized dashboards, goal-setting features and proactive coaching turn passive awareness into active behavior change. This is important because only 44% of employees currently feel fully supported in their financial wellness. That's a meaningful opening for employers who want to differentiate. A financial wellness solution will also provide identity protection. This is where the workplace impact becomes most direct. Strong identity protection goes well beyond credit freezes or basic alerts. It includes real-time monitoring across the dark web, financial institutions and public records; instant notifications for suspicious activity; device-level security tools; lost wallet recovery support; and insurance coverage for resolution costs. When an employee's identity is compromised, the speed and quality of their recovery depend almost entirely on the infrastructure they had in place before the incident. A compromised identity often leads to credit damage, requiring financial rebuilding and demanding education and guidance. When these wellness capabilities are integrated into a single connected experience, employees don't just get an alert; they receive a clear path forward. The broker's role in closing the gap Employee desires for greater financial wellness support are increasing. Brokers who understand this shift are positioned to have a very different kind of conversation with employers. When brokers recognize that financial well-being is inseparable from workforce performance, they can bring solutions to employers that better serve the business as a whole. By framing identity protection not as a standalone add-on but as one integrated component of a broader financial health strategy, brokers can help employers see the full picture: the risk identity theft poses to productivity and morale, the inadequacy of fragmented point solutions and the competitive advantage of getting this right. Employees who feel financially secure are more focused, more loyal and more productive. For employers, offering benefits that support business outcomes is essential. An integrated benefits solution that connects credit health, financial wellness, and identity protection delivers a double win: protecting what matters now and accelerating what’s possible next. Want to explore how an integrated approach to employee financial protection could serve your clients? Visit our employee benefits resource hub