The ThreatMetrix report also revealed the influence of EMV migration, with massive growth in attacks targeting global online retailers. There were 69 million e-commerce attacks in the quarter driven by the billions of stolen credentials available on the dark web. "We are beginning to see the aftermath of last year's EMV migration, with fraud targeting e-commerce retailers growing at a rapid pace."

The analysis also disclosed account creations from mobile are growing rapidly and are increasingly under attack because the process often bypasses many security features. ThreatMetrix reported the rejection of about 10% of account creations, an increase of 250% from the previous year.

The challenge, according to ThreatMetrix, stems from fraudsters becoming almost indistinguishable from trusted users, employing numerous tactics to deceive even the most careful businesses and users. The floods of stolen identity data available in the wild following numerous data breaches means fraudsters often behave more like legitimate users than the real consumers, often easily able to answer step-up authentications questions.

The report surmised, "This highlights the relentless use of stolen credentials, particularly in e-commerce and media. Although new accounts in financial services are attacked less, alternative payment platforms and e-lenders seem to be more susceptible than traditional institutions, as fraudsters appear to target these new platforms to sign up for quick loans using stolen identities."

Alisdair Faulkner, chief products officer, said in the report, "Trust is at the heart of this economy and this is predicated on an organization's ability to distinguish trusted users from fraudsters while continuing to place user experience at the heart of their digital strategy, streamlining access and reducing friction."