The Challenge

Through ongoing collaboration with clients, Symcor identified a growing trend: some of the highest rates of losses financial institutions were facing were because of an increase in counterfeit cheque fraud. This rise in fraudulent activity revealed the urgency to plug the operational and technological vulnerabilities that conventional fraud detection methods inherently have.

Key challenges included:

• Limitations of Manual Detection: Many financial institutions still rely on manual processes to identify fraudulent cheques. These methods are time-intensive and depend heavily on individual expertise. As cheque volumes grow, this approach becomes unsustainable, causing processing delays and counterfeits that pass undetected.

• Inconsistent Data Capture from Cheques: Cheques often contain handwritten or stylized information that vary widely in format, making it difficult to extract key data accurately. Traditional fraud detection systems struggle with such variability — limiting the effectiveness of automated fraud detection tools and increasing the need for manual intervention.

• Spread of High-Quality Fakes: Fraudsters now use professional image-editing tools and Artificial Intelligence to produce counterfeit cheques that closely mimic legitimate ones. These sophisticated fakes are difficult for legacy systems to detect, resulting in increased exposure to fraud risk.

The Solution

The rise in counterfeit cheque activity presented Symcor with an opportunity to help not just individual clients but the broader Canadian banking ecosystem.

Symcor’s Image Verify, powered by the COR.IQ fraud detection suite, helps Canadian financial institutions stop cheque fraud and payee name mismatches before funds are released. As one of Canada’s leading multibank fraud intelligence networks, COR.IQ leverages exclusive consortium data from major financial institutions along with daily updated cheque and customer information - offering unmatched visibility into emerging fraud patterns.

Built on 25+ years of payments expertise and proprietary fraud signals, the solution detects subtle image manipulations, counterfeits, and payee mismatches with remarkable precision. The image analysis capability transforms cheque verification from a manual, error-prone process into a scalable, automated defence system trusted by Canada’s largest banks.

Key initiatives included:

• Image Analysis Technology: Integrated into COR.IQ’s fraud detection algorithms, this advanced technology along with Symcor’s comprehensive database of confirmed fraudulent cheque items enable Image Verify to detect patterns, identify subtle inconsistencies and recognize digital manipulations across extensive volumes of cheques.

• Customized Review of Unique Formats of Canadian Cheques: Image Verify is tailored to recognize the distinct characteristics of Canadian cheques, supporting all types — including retail, commercial, government, and Clearing Replacement Document (CRD) images. • Online Portal for Alerts Monitoring: Users can seamlessly review fraud alerts through an online portal.

• Comprehensive User Training and Onboarding: Symcor provides full training and onboarding to ensure clients can seamlessly integrate and maximize the value of Image Verify.

Business Outcomes

Within one year of implementing across financial institutions, Image Verify delivered measurable impact:

• 90% Fraud Detection Accuracy — Achieved a high success rate in identifying and flagging suspicious counterfeit items, significantly reducing financial losses and protecting customer trust.

• $30 Million in Confirmed Fraud Detected — Identified $30 million in fraudulent transactions in its first full year of operation leveraging image analysis technology.

• Enhanced Customer Experience — Strengthened trust between financial institutions and their customers through faster, more accurate fraud detection.

These results demonstrate the tangible value of Image Verify in helping Canadian financial institutions strengthen fraud prevention and improve cheque-processing efficiency.

Safeguard Your Financial Transactions with Image Verify

Image Verify, part of Symcor’s COR.IQ fraud detection suite, enables financial institutions to detect counterfeit cheques and payee name mismatches with unmatched speed and precision. Powered by advanced image analysis capability, the solution delivers fully automated, highaccuracy identification of suspicious transactions — scaling effortlessly to process millions of cheque images and assist with intercepting fraud before funds are released. Trusted by Canada’s leading banks, Image Verify helps prevent losses, reduce manual workload, and strengthen customer confidence.

Discover how COR.IQ can help your financial organization detect more fraud, lower operational costs, and enhance customer experience — at scale.

Explore COR.IQ