We Analyzed $485M in Stolen Checks. Here's What We Found.
As SentiLink's Head of Fraud Insights, part of my job is keeping an eye on darkweb markets, seedy Telegram channels, and other corners of the internet where we find the supply side for much of the fraud that SentiLink detects for our partners later down the line. Recently, we began monitoring a select group of Telegram channels that are frequently used for check fraud and cataloging the stolen checks we find there. In just the past few months, we've cataloged nearly 20,000 checks, sourced from nearly 2,000 different US banks and credit unions, totaling more than $485 million in potentially-stolen funds.
To date, we have cataloged 18,030 checks shared across 53 different Telegram channels. The earliest of these checks is dated 05/03/24; the latest ones date from mid-October.
A majority of the checks – 63% – include at least one business; 33% are checks from an individual to a business or a business to an individual, and another 30% are business-to-business.
