It’s obvious that 2020 was a year of unprecedented change and created brand new opportunities for fraud. In 2021, fraudsters will continue to iterate on new and old methods of attack, requiring businesses to remain flexible and proactive to prevent losses. We created the 2021 Future of Fraud Forecast to help businesses anticipate new types of fraud and prepare and protect consumers on the road ahead. Here are the trends we expect to see over the coming year: Putting a Face to Frankenstein IDs: Synthetic identity fraud will start to rely on “Frankenstein faces” for biometric verification. “Too Good to Be True” COVID Solutions: The promise of at-home test kits, vaccines and treatments will be used as means for sophisticated phishing and social engineering schemes. Stimulus Fraud Activity, Round Two: Fraudsters will take advantage of additional stimulus funding by using stolen data to intercept payments. Say ‘Hello’ to Constant Automated Attacks: Once the stimulus fraud attacks run their course, hackers will increasingly turn to automated methods. Survival of the Fittest for Small Businesses: In 2021, businesses with lackluster fraud prevention tools will suffer large financial losses. To learn more about how to protect your business and customers, download the Future of Fraud Forecast and check out Experian’s fraud prevention solutions. Future of Fraud Forecast Request a call

Experian Automotive Market Insights dashboard provides a variety of insights to help dealers tackle their biggest challenges.

Credit cards are the most widely available credit products offered to millions of consumers today. For many consumers, owning a credit card is a relatively simple step toward establishing credit history and obtaining access to other lending products later in life. For credit unions, offering a credit card to members expands and enriches the credit relationship. In today’s environment, some credit unions don’t view credit cards as an integral part of their member service. I propose that the benefits of credit cards in a credit union portfolio are impactful, meaningful and fully align to member outreach and community service. A high-level review of risk-adjusted yields across three of the most common retail products offered by credit unions show that credit cards can be very profitable. The average APR of credit cards as of Q3 2020 is just slightly below personal loans. While charge-offs as a percentage of balances are more than double of personal loans, the estimated risk-adjusted yield is still elevated and is 1.8 times higher than auto loan and leases. See Table 1. Table 1. Estimated average risk-adjusted yield for auto loan and lease, personal loan, and credit card for credit unions Auto loan and lease Personal loan Credit card Average APR 5.21% 12.05% 11.26% Charge-offs as % of balances (annualized) 0.28% 0.89% 1.98% Risk-adjusted yield 4.93% 11.16% 9.28% Notes: Average APR of auto loans and leases, personal loans, and charge-off information as of Q3 2020 was extracted from Experian-Oliver Wyman IntelliViewSM Market Intelligence Reports. IntelliView Market Intelligence Reports, Dec. 22, 2020, experian.com/decision-analytics/market-intelligence/intelliview. Average APR of credit card as of Q3 2020 was extracted from National Credit Union Administration website. Credit Union and Bank Rates 2020 Q3, Dec. 22, 2020, https://www.ncua.gov/analysis/cuso-economic-data/credit-union-bank-rates/credit-union-and-bank-rates-2020-q3. Estimated risk-adjusted yield is calculated as the difference between average APR and charge-offs. A profitable retail product allows a credit union to share those profits back with members consistent with its mission of promoting and supporting the financial health and well-being of its members. Credit cards provide diversification of income streams. Income diversification provides a level of stability across cyclical economic conditions when some types of credit exposures may perform poorly, while others may be more stable. When combined with sound and effective risk governance, credit diversification allows lenders to mitigate levels of concentration risks in their aggregate portfolio. Offering credit cards to members is one avenue to grow loan volume and achieve scale that’s sufficiently manageable for credit unions. Scale is particularly important today as it’s needed to fund technology investments. The pandemic accelerated the massive movement toward digital engagement, and scale makes technology investments more cost-effective.  When lenders become more productive and efficient, they further lower the cost of credit products to members. (Stovall, Nathan. Dec. 14, 2020. Desire to compete with megabanks driving more U.S. regional bank M&A — KBW CE blog. https://platform.mi.spglobal.com/web/client?auth=inherit#news/.) The barriers to offering credit cards have moderately declined. Technology partners, payment processors and specialized industry companies are available in the marketplace. The biggest challenge for credit unions and lenders is credit risk management. To be profitable and to stay relevant, credit cards require a relatively sophisticated risk management framework of underwriting criteria, pricing, credit line management, operations and marketing. Industry and specialized support for launching and managing credit cards is widely available and accessible. Analytics play an essential role in managing credit cards. With an average active life of approximately five years, credit card portfolios need regular and periodic performance reviews to manage inherent risk and to identify opportunities for growth and profitability. Account management for credit cards is equally as important as underwriting. Credit line management, authorization, activation and retention have significant impact to the performance of existing accounts. Continuous engagement with members is critical and has taken on a new meaning lately. Credit cards provide an opportunity to engage members, to grow lending relationships and to support financial well-being. Marketing and meaningful card offers drive card usage and relevance. They’re critical components in customer communication and service. The benefits of credit cards contribute positively to a credit union portfolio. With sound and effective risk management practices, credit cards are profitable, help diversify income streams, grow loan volume and support member credit needs.

Recently, I shared articles about the problems surrounding third-party and first-party fraud. Now I’d like to explore a hybrid type – synthetic identity fraud – and how it can be the hardest type of fraud to detect. What is synthetic identity fraud? Synthetic identity fraud occurs when a criminal creates a new identity by mixing real and fictitious information. This may include blending real names, addresses, and Social Security numbers with fabricated information to create a single identity.   Once created, fraudsters will use their synthetic identities to apply for credit. They employ a well-researched process to accumulate access to credit. These criminals often know which lenders have more liberal identity verification policies that will forgive data discrepancies and extend credit to people who appear to be new or emerging consumers. With each account that they add, the synthetic identity builds more credibility.   Eventually, the synthetic identity will “bust out,” or max out all available credit before disappearing. Because there is no single person whose identity was stolen or misused there’s no one to track down when this happens, leaving businesses to deal with the fall out.   More confounding for the lenders involved is that each of them sees the same scam through a different lens. For some, these were longer-term reliable customers who went bad. For others, the same borrower was brand new and never made a payment. Synthetic identities don't appear consistently as a new account problem or a portfolio problem or correlate to thick- or thin-filed identities, further complicating the issue.   How does synthetic identity fraud impact me?   As mentioned, when synthetic identities bust out, businesses are stuck footing the bill.   Annual SIF (synthetic identity fraud) charge-offs in the United States alone could be as high as $11 billion. – Steven D’Alfonso, research director, IDC Financial Insights1   Unlike first- and third-party fraud, which deal with true identities and can be tracked back to a single person (or the criminal impersonating them), synthetic identities aren’t linked to an individual. This means that the tools used to identify those types of fraud won’t work on synthetics because there’s no victim to contact (as with third-party fraud), or real customer to contact in order to collect or pursue other remedies.   Solving the synthetic identity fraud problem   Preventing and detecting synthetic identities requires a multi-level solution that includes robust checkpoints throughout the customer lifecycle.   During the application process, lenders must look beyond the credit report. By looking past the individual identity and analyzing its connections and relationships to other individuals and characteristics, lenders can better detect anomalies to pinpoint false identities.   Consistent portfolio review is also necessary. This is best done using a risk management system that continuously monitors for all types of fraudulent activities across multiple use cases and channels. A layered approach can help prevent and detect fraud while still optimizing the customer experience.   With the right tools, data, and analytics, fraud prevention can teach you more about your customers, improving your relationships with them and creating opportunities for growth while minimizing fraud losses.   To wrap up this series, I’ll explore account takeover fraud and how the correct strategy can help you manage all four types of fraud while still optimizing the customer experience. To learn more about the impact of synthetic identities, download our “Preventing Synthetic Identity Fraud” white paper and call us to learn more about innovative solutions you can use to detect and prevent fraud.   Contact us Download whitepaper   1Synthetic Identity Fraud Update: Effects of COVID-19 and a Potential Cure from Experian, IDC Financial Insights, July 2020

Despite the constant narrative around “unprecedented times” and the “new normal,” if the current market volatility tells us anything, it’s to go back to basics. As financial institutions navigate COVID-19’s economic impact, and challenges that are likely to be different or more extreme than in the past, the best credit portfolio management practices are fundamental. The global pandemic impacts today’s data as existing data and analytics may not accurately reflect what is happening now, resulting in inaccurate portfolio assessment. In order to successfully navigate loss forecasting, predicting borrower behavior and controlling loss ratios, lenders must engage new data, analytics and economic scenarios suited for today’s changing times. In Experian’s latest white paper, “Credit Portfolio Management After the COVID-19 Recession,” we’ll explore best practices to combat the following challenges: Forecasting credit losses despite increased economic volatility Businesses have long used a variety of data, analytics and models to anticipate and project the future direction of their organization based on a number of data points; however, with the onset of the global pandemic, long-standing scenarios became suddenly irrelevant.   Predicting borrower behavior given increased financial disparities The post-pandemic and pre-pandemic worlds are very different places for some borrowers. Pandemic-related job losses and other economic effects will not be spread evenly and this variability may be reflected in lenders’ portfolios.   Controlling loss ratios In the post-COVID world, it will be mission critical for lenders to use high-quality and up-to-date data to balance priorities and identify which areas of their portfolio need attention now.   Whether your portfolio is doing better than expected, as expected, or worse than expected, now is the time to refresh portfolio management strategy. Lenders should be watching for early indicators in loan portfolios to better navigate a fluctuating economy and that requires new resources and better tools. Take control of your business’ trajectory. Download now

Small SUVs became the most financed vehicle segment in Q3 2020, making up 26.01% of all financed vehicles during the quarter.

2020 is finally over – been there, done that. And while it seems safe to say most everyone is all too eager to kick off a new calendar year, the reality is we’re still reeling – and will continue to reel – through the economic impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic. As we inch closer to the one year marker of when many businesses were sent home – across all industries, including those tech-inclined and those less so – the understatement of the year is that the world has since changed as have consumer communication preferences, how businesses and customers interact, tweaked definitions of privacy, and new (heightened) expectations of evolving a positive customer experience with minimal friction and maximum security. While last year’s predictions of entering a new set of Roaring 20’s may not have panned out the way we had initially imagined, many of the trends thought to evolve over the last 365 days did. As we all look toward a post-pandemic world, here are six top trends to keep tabs on throughout 2021. 1. Data Data as a commodity and as a business differentiating factor has reached an all-time high. It’s doing more across the entire customer lifecycle and can elevate businesses to best prep for growth, especially as consumers begin to look for more financial products (whether looking for financial assistance as the CARES Act accommodation period ends, or to take advantage of the booming mortgage industry, etc.). Data can also give more insights into consumers than ever before. Far beyond just credit scores and financial data, today’s data sets can reveal consumers’ lifestyle preferences, their preferred communication channels, their rental histories, and so much more. With alternative credit data and non-traditional data (including consumer-permissioned data), businesses can get a holistic picture of their customers’ payment behaviors. That streaming media service monthly payment may seem minimal, but now could increase your credit score through Experian Boost. Experian is still making big strides in all efforts to use data for good. As of December 31, 2020, Experian Boost has “boosted” Americans’ credit scores nearly 47 million points. Additionally, throughout 2020, Experian worked with financial institutions and credit furnishers to continue to put consumers first and serve as the consumer’s bureau. Coming up in 2021? Using data for differentiation, which can ultimately drive business growth. From instant prescreens to identifying your best customers (and offering them cross-sell and upsell opportunities to increase retention and customer loyalty) to helping customers that may be on the brink of financial distress and connecting them with management solutions to help them get back on their feet, data can help businesses – and their customers – get there. 2. Fraud and Friction (And the Reduction of Both) With the pandemic, fraud saw increases across the board. Here are just some quick stats: 200% increase in first-time online banking usage immediately following shelter-in-place orders (Aite Group, “Workplace Distancing: Adapting Fraud and AML Operations to COVID-19,” April 2020) 652% year-over-year increase in records found on the dark web (Experian CyberAgent technology) 50% increase in human farming – real people being hired for purposes of fraud – month-over-month in March 2020 (Arkose Labs) And, unsurprisingly, consumer and business sentiments toward fraud are also evolving with these increasing trends. For example, according to Experian’s North America Trends Report, half of consumers continue to site security as the most important factor of their online experience. Additionally, there’s been an increase in the percentage of businesses who have recently increased or are planning to increase fraud budget from 76% in 2019 to 89% as of Sept. 2020. More complex phishing schemes and increased fraudster activity is due in part to numerous industries having to shift to online processes and business transactions overnight. Adoption for mobile wallets has jumped 11% since July 2020, according to the 2020 Global Insights Report. Systems and technology that were not ready or not armed with the necessary infrastructure left critical access points open that could be exploited by fraudsters. Fraud exists across the customer lifecycle, at every access point. And while fraud is complex, with Experian as your partner, solving it isn’t. Innovative technology enables businesses to prevent fraud by identifying credible customers and applying the correct treatment to the riskiest consumer and business accounts. We can help you develop a layered risk management strategy so you can focus resources on growing and protecting your customer relationships. 3. A New Administration – Changing of the Guards on the Regulatory Front With the new year enters the inauguration of a new president and administration. Though there is still much to be determined, certain areas are drawing a lot of attention with this changing of the guards. The highlights? The CFPB. Priorities and leadership could change. With COVID-19 top of mind, it is likely there will be aggressive agendas put forth to help protect the millions of consumers who have suffered economic distress and harm as a result of the pandemic. Data Portability. With an increased consumer appetite to port their data, questions and concerns around data security – and how to verify for a third party asking for the data – are also on the rise. There are a number of issues facing financial institutions around data portability, one of the largest being defining the line between consumer account information and proprietary data. All things privacy – state vs. national bills. The debate continues on how to move forward (whether privacy legislation will be handled by the states or at the national level), but for now it seems there is more progress at the state level. California was the first state to push through state-level privacy legislation in the form of the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018. Twenty-four states are considering legislation that would require consent before collecting or disclosing personal information with third parties. 4. Analytics + Digitalization – Smarter, Better, Faster COVID-19 accelerated digital transformation for many. Some companies were ready, having already started making the headway in years prior, while others struggled – and some continue to struggle. The pandemic – and its corresponding recovery – is reason now, more than ever, to get some of your digital transformation priorities checked off of your list. Your customers demand it and your business needs it. Tackling analytics and digitalization not only brings your business up to speed, but improves your decisioning, enhances your offerings, and enables better platforms and data usage. In addition to digitalization, artificial intelligence for credit decisioning and personalized banking can also be expected to be a top trend, especially AI that is ethical and explainable, as will the increasing adoption and implementation of cloud computing. As consumer experience continues to reign supreme, any and all technology to enhance and improve that experience – think chatbots and virtual assistants – will also likely increase in presence. 5. Verification & Identity Identity has been a trending topic over the last few years, brought on by increasingly digital lifestyles and the intersection of personalization, frictionless transactions and adequate security. Identity verification and verification of other information such as income, employment and the like are increasingly needed in a today’s pandemic and tomorrow’s post-pandemic world. Leveraged across the lifecycle and during critical customer interactions, the need is especially heightened for insights, data accuracy, and diversification of data sets – to name a few. And while it was already established that identity verification is not just for marketing services, there are now even greater needs for financial institutions to be able to confidently know that their customers are who they say they are. Some areas to keep your eye on in 2021? Identity, income, assets and employment. 6. Redefining the Modern Mortgage As has been a common trend, spurred by the disruption caused by COVID-19, the mortgage industry is one of the many to have a magnifying glass brought to its areas for improvement. Some of those areas include operational efficiency, digital adoption and transparency. In line with the better and faster needs that lenders are continually trying to pace with, the need for speed is hitting mortgage originations, with an ideal situation outlined as closing in 30 days or less. Creating operational efficiencies through faster, fresher data can be the key for lenders to more accurately assess a borrower’s ability to pay upfront. Additionally, now, as most mortgage lenders are breaking previous origination records by a landslide (thanks pandemic), there’s new focus on other performance indicators. With such impetus, the modern mortgage is constantly evolving, incorporating customer-centric facets including a seamless digital process, providing meaningful customer experiences and leveraging the latest and greatest technology to better future-proof the industry through scalable technology, while aiming to reduce costs. For all your needs in 2021 and beyond, Experian has you covered. Learn More

Previously, we discussed the risks of account takeover and how a Defense in Depth strategy can protect your business. Before implementation it’s important to understand the financial benefits of the strategy. There are a few key steps to assessing and quantifying the value of Defense in Depth. Transaction risk assessment: This requires taking inventory of all possible transactions. Session-level risk analysis: With the transactions categorized by risk level, the next step is to review session history based on the highest risk activity within the session. Quantify the cost of a challenge: There are multiple costs associated with challenging a user using step-up authentication. Consider both direct and indirect costs – failure rate, contact center operational cost, and attrition rate following failed challenges (consider lifetime value of account) Quantify the expected challenge rate: This can be done by comparing the Defense in Depth approach to a traditional approach. Below is a calculator that will help determine the cost of the reduced challenges associated with a Defense in Depth strategy versus a traditional strategy. initIframe('5f039d2e4c508b1b0aafa4bd'); In addition to the quantitative benefits, it is important to consider some of the qualitative benefits of this approach: Challenging at moments that matter: Customers appreciate and expect protection in online banking, especially when moving money externally or updating contact information. This is a great way to achieve both convenience and security. Improved fraud management: By staging the risk decision at the transaction level, the business can balance the type of challenge with the transaction risk. There are incremental cost considerations to include in the business case as well. For instance, there is an increase in transaction calls for a risk assessment at the medium/high risk transactions – about 10% in the example above. Generally, the increased transaction cost is more than offset by the reduction in cost of challenges alone. A Defense in Depth strategy can help businesses manage fraud risk and prevent account takeover in online banking without sacrificing user experience. If you are interested in assistance with building your business case and understanding the strategies to implement a successful Defense in Depth strategy, contact us today. Contact us 1Identity Fraud in the Digital Age, Javelin Strategy & Research, September 2020

Preventing account takeover (ATO) fraud is paramount in today’s increasingly digital world. In this two-part series, we’ll explore the benefits and considerations of a Defense in Depth strategy for stopping ATO. The challenges with preventing account takeover Historically, managing fraud and identity risk in online banking has been a trade-off between customer experience and the effectiveness of fraud controls. The basic control structure relies on a lock on the front door of online banking front door—login—as the primary authentication control to defend against ATO. Within this structure, there are two choices. The first is tightening the lock, which equals a higher rate of step-up authentication challenges and lower fraud losses. The second is loosening the lock, which results in a lower challenge rate and higher fraud loses. Businesses can layer in more controls to reduce the false positives, but that only allows marginal efficiency increases and usually represents a significant expense in both time and budget to add in new controls. Now is the perfect time for businesses reassess their online banking authentication strategy for a multitude of reasons: ATO is on the rise: According to Javelin Strategy & Research, ATO increased 72% in 2019.1 Users’ identities and credentials are at more risk than ever before: Spear phishing and data breaches are now a fact of life leading to reduced effectiveness of traditional authentication controls. Online banking enrollments are on the rise: According to BioCatch, in the months following initial shelter-in-place orders across the country, banks have seen a massive spike in first time online banking access. Users expect security in online banking: Half of consumers continue to cite security as the most important factor in their online experience. Businesses who reassess the control structure for their online banking will increase the effectiveness of their tools and reduce the number of customers challenged at the same time – giving them Defense in Depth. What is Defense in Depth? Defense in Depth refers to a strategy in which a series of defense mechanisms are layered in order to protect data and information. The basic assumptions underlying the value of a Defense in Depth strategy are: Different types of transactions within online banking have different levels of inherent risk (e.g., external money movement is considerably higher risk compared to viewing recent credit card transactions) At login, the overall transaction risk associated with the session risk is unknown The risk associated with online banking is concentrated in relatively small populations – the vast majority of digital transactions are low risk This is the Pareto principle at play – i.e., about 80% of online banking risk is concentrated within about 20% of sessions. Experian research shows that risk is even more concentrated – closer to >90% of the risk is concentrated in <10% of transactions. This is relatively intuitive, as the most common activities within online banking consist of users checking their balance or reviewing recent transactions. It is much less common for customers to engage in higher risk transaction. The challenge is that businesses cannot know the session risk at the time of challenge, thus their efficiency is destined to be sub-optimal. The benefits of Defense in Depth A Defense in Depth strategy can really change the economics of an online banking security program. Adopting a strategy that continuously assesses the overall session risk as a user navigates through their session allows more efficient risk decisions at moments that matter most to the user. With that increased efficiency, businesses are better set up to prevent fraud without frustrating legitimate users. Defense in Depth allows businesses to intelligently layer security protocols to protect against vulnerability – helping to prevent theft and reputational losses and minimize end-user frustration. In addition to these benefits, a continuous risk-based approach can have lower overall operational costs than a traditional security approach. The second part of this series will explore the cost considerations associated with the Defense in Depth strategy explored above. In the meantime, feel free to reach out to discuss options. Contact us 1Identity Fraud in the Digital Age, Javelin Strategy & Research, September 2020

COVID-19 is not only shifting the way we work, live and think, but it is also reframing the conversation behind which metrics successful companies focus on. Having worked in marketing for various lenders, origination and funding milestones were prevalent in their marketing. However, during this unique time in mortgage when most lenders are shattering previous origination records, focus is now drawn to new performance indicators. Providing a seamless digital process A recent McKinsey survey determined that consumer and business digital adoption vaulted five years forward in a matter of eight weeks at the beginning of the pandemic. And while this is generally true for business, many mortgage lenders may not have had the time or resources to update and modernize their processes due to massive origination volumes. When volume is good, companies wait to update their technology – either due to an “if it isn’t breaking why fix it” mentality, or, in the case of unmanageable volume, lenders can’t fathom disrupting their processes. Lenders that proactively streamlined technology and focused on digital adoption before the pandemic are leveraging and benefitting from the current mortgage environment. For lenders that did not digitize in time, the high-volume environment highlights their inefficiencies and unscalable processes. Providing meaningful customer experiences Forward-thinking, resilient mortgage lenders are also tracking how effectively they can provide meaningful customer experiences, for both their borrowers as well as their internal customers – their employees. For borrowers, it could come in the form of enjoying a seamless mortgage experience, being proactively kept abreast of their loan status, and the ability to interact and communicate with the lender in a manner that works best for their style. For employees of the company, this can come from feeling valued and listened to, with relevant and useful communications and resources to rely on during these uncertain times. It also comes in the form of providing the right resources for employees to perform at a high level during these times when it matters the most and working efficiently without sacrificing quality. Investing in technology and your greatest asset, your employees, is the answer to how mortgage lenders can achieve these metrics which will help them stand out among their competition. As the refi heyday starts to show signs of impermanence, these differentiators will become more important than ever – and all lenders should be taking a proactive look now at how they can bridge their digital gaps. Mortgage lenders are coming out of 2020 with strong earnings and should look to allocate a part of these earnings towards ‘future-proofing’ through scalable technology that will ultimately reduce costs and continue to bring in qualified volume. Join Experian Mortgage in accelerating the mortgage evolution and learn how we can help bridge your technology gaps. Learn More

DID YOU KNOW: 74% of organizations believe their data breach response plan could be more effective if they incorporated what they learned from previous breaches?1 The COVID-19 outbreak has accelerated digital transformation and upended business and life as usual. As the threat of cybercrime and data breaches continue to disrupt businesses during this time, being prepared for an incident is a must for organizations of all sizes. Experian’s new and improved Data Breach Response Guide is here to help you defend your network and prepare for a data breach with insights and the latest industry trends. This year, we also have a new feature to help you quickly and effectively prepare for a data breach. The new Experian Reserved Response™ Hub delivers a digital, self-service destination to create, plan, prepare and pressure-test your data breach response plan. Companies that access the Hub can: Download data breach readiness reading materials Access proven notification templates Get the FAQ template and pre-breach incident checklist Access multiple levels of Experian Reserved Response™ services See Experian Reserved Response™ guarantees (with SLAs) for manpower, infrastructure, and response readiness And more! Data breach incidents can happen to any business, of any size, at any time, all over the world. On average, organizations can save $2 million if they have an established incident response team with a plan that has been tested extensively, according to the IBM and Ponemon 2020 Cost of a Data Breach Report. Failing to respond to a breach properly can cause brand damage, customer migration, executive termination, and more. Experian Reserved Response™ is the only program that guarantees SLAs and can have your plan ready in as little as three days. With over 17 years of experience managing tens of thousands of data breaches, we’re here to help you plan and pressure-test your response process. To get Response Ready™, download our latest Data Breach Response Guide and access to our new Reserved Response Hub today. 1 PwC. 2020. Digital Trust Insights Pulse Survey

No two customers are the same. That’s why it’s important to go beyond the traditional credit score for a closer look at each consumer’s individual circumstance and create personalized response plans. Learn more about some of the many different customers you’ll encounter and download our guide to get recommendations for every stage of the lifecycle. Get the Guide

According to Experian’s Q3 2020 State of the Automotive Finance Market report, 26.20% of all new vehicles are leased compared to 30.27% last year.

It’s clear that the digital transformation we experienced this year is here to stay. While there are many positives associated with this transformation – innovation, new ways to work, and greater online connectedness – it’s important that we review the risks associated with these trends as well.   In late 2019 and throughout 2020, Experian surveyed consumers and businesses. We asked about online habits, expectations for information security and plans for future spending. Unsurprisingly, about half of consumers think they’ll continue to spend more online in the coming year. Those same consumers now have a higher expectation for their online experience than before the onset of COVID-19.   Hand-in-hand with the online activity trends come increased risks associated with identity theft and fraud as criminals find new chances to steal information. In response to both of these trends, businesses and consumers want a balance between security and convenience.   Our latest trends report dives into the new opportunities 2020 has created for fraud, and the opportunities to prevent identity theft or manipulation and the associated losses while building stronger relationships.   Download the full North America Trends Report for a look into North American trends over the last year and to learn how fraud prevention and positive customer relationships are actually two sides of the same coin. North America Trends Report

While things aren't quite back to normal in Q3 2020, there were a number of positive trends that demonstrates the automotive industry's resilience.