Revolut: Cyber Enabled Telegram APP Fraud Jumps 233%

Revolut has published its latest Consumer Security and Financial Crime Report, revealing that Telegram, the encrypted messaging platform, has become the fastest-growing vector for Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud globally.

Meanwhile, Meta's ecosystem – comprising Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp – accounts for 44% of reported scams.

While this proportion significantly exceeds Telegram's 20%, the velocity of fraud case proliferation on Telegram presents a concerning security trend.

Revolut's analysis indicates that fraud instances originating on Telegram surged by 233% since the previous measurement period.

Security researchers suggest that criminals are exploiting the platform's encryption and privacy features to scale malicious operations, representing a tactical evolution in threat actor methodology.

To address these emerging threats, Revolut is advocating for enhanced data-sharing protocols between organisations in the UK, which could help establish more robust fraud detection frameworks.

The encryption paradox

The data presents a notable migration in criminal infrastructure, from conventional social networks to encrypted messaging platforms.

Fraud originating from Telegram currently represents one fifth of all reported scams (20%). While the platform's end-to-end encryption is positioned as a security enhancement, it simultaneously provides threat actors with an environment to conduct fraudulent operations with reduced detection risk.

The report identifies that 58% of all employment-related scams globally now originate from Telegram, suggesting targeted exploitation of the platform's privacy architecture.

TikTok, whilst maintaining lower overall fraud volumes compared to established platforms, has experienced significant threat activity growth. According to the report, the percentage of scams originating on the application has increased sixfold year-on-year.

Revolut's findings suggest that purchase scams remain the most prevalent scam type.

UK users face particular exposure to purchase scams, which account for 54.9% of all reported cases.

Employment-related scams are gaining traction, with Revolut observing a threefold year-on-year increase globally. These scams now represent 22% of all cases, according to the analysis.

Platform monetisation of malicious content

The Revolut report, conducted by Juniper Research, determined that social media platforms generated an estimated £3.8bn (US$5.1bn) in revenue from fraudulent advertisements targeting European users in 2025 alone, raising questions about platform accountability and content moderation effectiveness.

Concurrently, UK Finance reports indicate that APP fraud volumes increased by 17% in the first half of 2025 following the introduction of the mandatory reimbursement regime in the UK.

“The rapid rise of scams stemming from Telegram shows how quickly criminal tactics adapt,” says Woody Malouf, Revolut's Head of Financial Crime.

“Revolut is processing billions of data points to stay ahead, but the digital ecosystem is only as strong as its weakest link. We need social media companies to step up. Protecting users must be a shared priority across the entire industry, including the platforms where these scams are born.”

Regulatory pressure for platform security

Against this backdrop and ahead of the government's upcoming Fraud Strategy, Revolut is calling for legal requirements mandating online platforms to participate in data sharing schemes or face enforcement action, with additional regulatory measures explored if substantial fraud reduction is not achieved by major platforms.

To counter these threats, nearly one third of the company's total workforce now operates within financial crime prevention functions.

Revolut has deployed security initiatives including the Scam Buster Bot, which utilises conversational data analysis to predict probable scam types and Street Mode, which enables users to establish trusted geographical locations for transactions.

The firm recently hosted the inaugural Revolut FinCrime Summit, convening 150 partners and regulators to exchange intelligence on global financial crime mitigation strategies.