Overview

With the passage of the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act (Check 21), enacted in 2003 , financial institutions began accepting electronic check images from depositing consumers, and there was no looking back. Remote deposit capture (RDC) technology has become a standard banking amenity that consumers depend upon. This report will focus on how this technology can be made safer by preventing criminal exploitation and misuse. 
 
Key questions discussed in this report: 
  • How secure is mobile deposit technology?
  • Are criminals leveraging the availability of mobile deposits to commit crimes?
  • How can financial institutions improve the security and acceptance of mobile deposits for consumers?
 
Companies Mentioned:  Federal Reserve, PayPal, United States Postal Inspection Service, Venmo

 

 

 

Methodology

The data in this report was primarily collected from a random-sample survey of 5,000 consumers in 2020. There were additional interviews conducted with banks, credit unions, and technology companies familiar with the topic of mobile deposits.

Book a Meeting with the Author

Related content

March 31, 2026
Iran Cyber Risk: ‘Five-Alarm Fire’ for U.S. Banks, Critical Infrastructure

Iran-linked cyber activity is no longer hypothetical for U.S. financial institutions. International tensions, collaboration by adversaries, and gaps in oversight are reshaping fina...

March 26, 2026
A Line in the Sand for First-Party Fraud: From Identity to Intent

Financial institutions are seeing rising losses from first-party fraud, yet many still struggle to detect it before the damage is done. Traditional controls confirm who the custome...

February 25, 2026
Data Transparency in the Age of Cyber and Privacy Risk

As open banking and new privacy regulations accelerate, financial institutions face rising pressure to enhance privacy and cybersecurity transparency to strengthen consumer trust. ...

Make informed decisions in a digital financial world

Let's Connect