Fingerprint Announces Proximity Detection to Combat Device Farms and Multi-Accounting Fraud

New privacy-first feature helps enterprises detect coordinated fraud patterns through location-based device intelligence

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fingerprint, a leader in device intelligence for fraud prevention, today announced Proximity Detection, a new location-based signal for mobile devices that enables enterprises to uncover hidden fraud patterns and device farms by linking devices in close physical proximity.

Many mobile applications already require location permissions and rely on location data to function, including food and parcel delivery, financial services, iGaming, ridesharing and social and dating platforms. Yet despite having access to this data, companies struggle to use it effectively to link multiple devices and spot coordinated fraud attempts. Sophisticated operations, such as device farms running hundreds of fake accounts, exploit this lack of contextual intelligence to evade detection. Fraud and risk teams require a stronger, structured location signal that can group devices in the same physical area to connect these hidden patterns in real time.

Proximity Detection addresses the growing challenge of multi-accounting fraud, and large-scale bonus and promo abuse enabled by device farm operations. One example is food delivery platforms—fraudsters can create dozens of fake delivery driver accounts from the same location to claim multiple sign-up bonuses, or abuse referral programs by generating fake passenger accounts that all operate from the same place. Because these patterns often involve many devices clustered in the same physical environment, combining Fingerprint's accurate device identification with proximity insights helps fraud and risk teams spot suspicious device clusters.

Three Ways Proximity Detection Detects Sophisticated Attacks

Proximity Detection delivers three critical fraud prevention capabilities:

• Link related devices faster: Uncover hidden fraud patterns, such as multi-accounting, by linking devices in close physical proximity.
• Detect device farms: Spot multiple "new" accounts or devices operating from the same place, even when they're trying to hide behind VPNs or spoofing tools, to stop large-scale promo abuse and bot operations.
• Strengthen account security: Flag suspicious login attempts when devices from the same location attempt to log into multiple accounts.

Privacy-First Approach

Fingerprint built Proximity Detection with privacy at its core. The solution leverages app-level location permissions from users and provides only hashed proximity IDs in the payload, along with additional fields like precision radius and confidence. Fingerprint delivers zone-based anonymized comparison of co-located devices, ensuring enterprises can detect fraud without compromising user privacy.

"Enterprise companies have lacked a reliable way to use location data to link devices and quickly detect risky behavior," said Dan Pinto, CEO and co-founder of Fingerprint. "Proximity Detection adds a new level of location-based insights to our industry-leading device intelligence, helping our customers prevent large-scale bonus abuse, fake signups and other multi-accounting fraud. This demonstrates our commitment to continuous innovation as fraud tactics evolve, providing our customers with the stronger signals they need to stop sophisticated attacks."

Fighting Fraud Across Industries: From Fintech to the Gig Economy

Proximity Detection serves risk and fraud leaders across multiple high-impact verticals:

• Fintech/Banking: Detect ATO attempts by uncovering multiple accounts being accessed from devices in the same physical proximity.
• iGaming: Reveal coordinated fraud and prevent online betting bonus abuse by spotting clusters of devices from the same location, and identify attempted play from restricted regions.
• Gig Economy (Ride-Hailing, Food & Parcel Delivery, Travel & Mobility): Unveil fake drivers, passengers or delivery accounts operating from the same hub; surface shared device clusters revealing delivery or referral abuse; spot duplicate account creation to claim free rides or trials.

Proximity Detection is available now to all Fingerprint customers. To learn more about Proximity Detection, visit: https://fingerprint.com/blog/product-update-proximity-detection/.

About Fingerprint

Fingerprint, powered by the most accurate device intelligence technology, enables companies to prevent fraud and improve user experiences. Fingerprint processes 100+ signals from the browser, device and network to generate a stable and persistent unique VisitorID that can be used to understand visitor behavior. With a commitment to best-in-class data security and privacy, Fingerprint is proud to be SOC 2 Type II, GDPR and CCPA compliant. Fingerprint is trusted by over 6,000 companies worldwide, including 16% of the top 500 websites, to help catch sophisticated fraudsters and personalize experiences for trusted users. Learn more at fingerprint.com.