Payment Card Skimming

Global Payment Card Skimming Market to Reach US$5.3 Billion by 2030

The global market for Payment Card Skimming estimated at US$3.4 Billion in the year 2024, is expected to reach US$5.3 Billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 7.8% over the analysis period 2024-2030. Solutions Component, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is expected to record a 6.2% CAGR and reach US$3.1 Billion by the end of the analysis period. Growth in the Services Component segment is estimated at 10.5% CAGR over the analysis period.

The U.S. Market is Estimated at US$919.2 Million While China is Forecast to Grow at 12.0% CAGR

The Payment Card Skimming market in the U.S. is estimated at US$919.2 Million in the year 2024. China, the world`s second largest economy, is forecast to reach a projected market size of US$1.1 Billion by the year 2030 trailing a CAGR of 12.0% over the analysis period 2024-2030. Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at a CAGR of 4.0% and 7.4% respectively over the analysis period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 5.2% CAGR.

Global Payment Card Skimming Market – Key Trends & Drivers Summarized

Why Is Payment Card Skimming Still a Persistent and Evolving Threat Despite EMV Chip Migration?

Payment card skimming remains a significant cybercrime vector, even in an era of chip-enabled EMV (Europay, Mastercard, and Visa) cards, mobile wallets, and tokenized payment systems. Skimming involves the unauthorized capture of card data—particularly the magnetic stripe information—through hidden devices placed on ATMs, fuel pumps, point-of-sale terminals, or even handheld merchant readers. Despite increased chip adoption, many cards and terminals still retain magnetic stripe compatibility for backward integration, creating persistent vulnerabilities for data theft and subsequent card cloning.

Criminals are continually evolving their tactics to bypass modern security mechanisms, deploying advanced skimming devices that are ultra-thin, Bluetooth-enabled, and often integrated with hidden cameras to capture PINs. ATM malware, overlay devices, and relay attacks involving NFC-based systems are growing in sophistication. Organized crime syndicates, often operating across borders, are responsible for coordinated attacks targeting high-traffic locations. As financial fraud losses continue to mount, payment card skimming remains a critical concern for banks, payment processors, law enforcement agencies, and cybersecurity vendors alike.

How Are Skimming Techniques and Counter-Skimming Technologies Progressing in Tandem?

Modern skimming techniques include deep insert skimmers that blend seamlessly with ATM card readers, PIN overlay pads that mimic genuine keypads, and network-level sniffers that intercept data transmissions from compromised payment terminals. Criminals use remote-controlled devices and real-time transmission tools to exfiltrate data without physically returning to the skimming location. In fuel dispensers, wireless skimmers are hidden inside pump enclosures, undetectable without forensic inspection tools.

In response, anti-skimming technologies are advancing rapidly. Banks and ATM manufacturers are deploying jitter technology to disrupt skimmer reading attempts, while tamper sensors, vibration detectors, and PIN shield designs are becoming standard in new terminals. End-to-end encryption, tokenization, and dynamic CVV solutions offer software-level protection even if card data is intercepted. AI-powered fraud detection systems monitor transaction patterns for anomalies in geolocation, velocity, and merchant behavior. Mobile app alerts, biometric verification, and EMV fallback disabling further minimize the attack surface for skimming attempts.

Which Payment Channels and Geographies Are Most Vulnerable to Skimming Attacks Today?

Skimming is most prevalent in unattended payment environments such as ATMs, fuel stations, vending machines, and ticketing kiosks—locations where visual inspection and user vigilance are limited. Older card terminals without anti-skimming protections and terminals that still accept magnetic stripe swipes are especially susceptible. Within retail, small businesses using off-the-shelf or compromised point-of-sale systems are also frequent targets due to weaker cybersecurity protocols.

Geographically, regions with incomplete EMV adoption—such as parts of Latin America, Eastern Europe, South Asia, and Africa—remain hotbeds for skimming-related fraud. However, even countries with mature financial systems like the U.S. face persistent challenges, particularly in gas stations and ATMs due to delayed EMV rollouts in these sectors. Law enforcement coordination gaps and availability of black-market components online further facilitate global skimming operations. As cross-border e-commerce and travel increase, cardholders worldwide remain exposed to both domestic and international skimming threats.

What Is Fueling Long-Term Growth in Anti-Skimming Solutions and Financial Security Technologies?

The growth in anti-skimming and payment fraud prevention markets is driven by rising financial crime losses, increased digital payment penetration, and evolving regulatory mandates for payment security. With consumer trust and transaction integrity at stake, financial institutions are investing heavily in proactive risk mitigation, threat intelligence, and terminal-level security upgrades. EMV mandates, PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) compliance, and consumer protection laws are catalyzing technology adoption across both financial services and retail networks.

Strategically, fintech startups and established cybersecurity firms are developing advanced endpoint detection, anomaly scoring algorithms, and physical device authentication layers. Terminal hardware providers are integrating embedded encryption chips, secure firmware updates, and skimmer-resistant form factors into new product lines. Public-private partnerships, such as Europol’s financial cybercrime task forces and FBI-led cybercrime coalitions, are improving global response coordination. As digital payments expand and fraud techniques advance, the battle against payment card skimming will remain a dynamic and technologically intensive front in financial security infrastructure.

SCOPE OF STUDY:

The report analyzes the Payment Card Skimming market in terms of units by the following Segments, and Geographic Regions/Countries:

Segments:
Component (Solutions, Services); Deployment (On-Premise, Cloud); Application (Identity Theft, Payment Fraud, Money Laundering, ATMs, Other Applications)

Geographic Regions/Countries:
World; United States; Canada; Japan; China; Europe (France; Germany; Italy; United Kingdom; Spain; Russia; and Rest of Europe); Asia-Pacific (Australia; India; South Korea; and Rest of Asia-Pacific); Latin America (Argentina; Brazil; Mexico; and Rest of Latin America); Middle East (Iran; Israel; Saudi Arabia; United Arab Emirates; and Rest of Middle East); and Africa.

Select Competitors (Total 34 Featured) -

• Accertify
• ACI Worldwide
• BAE Systems Applied Intelligence
• Diebold Nixdorf
• FICO
• Fiserv
• Gemalto (Thales Group)
• Giesecke+Devrient
• IBM
• Ingenico Group
• Mastercard
• NCR Corporation
• NICE Actimize
• RSA Security LLC
• SAS Institute Inc.
• SEON Technologies Ltd.
• Stripe
• Thales Group
• Visa Inc.
• Worldline

TARIFF IMPACT FACTOR

Our new release incorporates impact of tariffs on geographical markets as we predict a shift in competitiveness of companies based on HQ country, manufacturing base, exports and imports (finished goods and OEM). This intricate and multifaceted market reality will impact competitors by artificially increasing the COGS, reducing profitability, reconfiguring supply chains, amongst other micro and macro market dynamics.

We are diligently following expert opinions of leading Chief Economists (14,949), Think Tanks (62), Trade & Industry bodies (171) worldwide, as they assess impact and address new market realities for their ecosystems. Experts and economists from every major country are tracked for their opinions on tariffs and how they will impact their countries.

We expect this chaos to play out over the next 2-3 months and a new world order is established with more clarity. We are tracking these developments on a real time basis.

As we release this report, U.S. Trade Representatives are pushing their counterparts in 183 countries for an early closure to bilateral tariff negotiations. Most of the major trading partners also have initiated trade agreements with other key trading nations, outside of those in the works with the United States. We are tracking such secondary fallouts as supply chains shift.

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APRIL 2025: NEGOTIATION PHASE

Our April release addresses the impact of tariffs on the overall global market and presents market adjustments by geography. Our trajectories are based on historic data and evolving market impacting factors.

JULY 2025 FINAL TARIFF RESET

Complimentary Update: Our clients will also receive a complimentary update in July after a final reset is announced between nations. The final updated version incorporates clearly defined Tariff Impact Analyses.

Reciprocal and Bilateral Trade & Tariff Impact Analyses:

USA
CHINA
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CANADA
EU
JAPAN
INDIA
176 OTHER COUNTRIES.

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