Sofortüberweisung: Fast money transfer with new fraud risks!

Sofortüberweisung: Fast money transfer with new fraud risks!

Since October 9, 2025, instant transfers have been mandatory for all banking institutions in Germany. This regulation is part of an EU regulation that allows money transfers to be carried out in real time. The transfers should take a maximum of ten seconds and be priced at the same rate as conventional transfers, which in most cases means that they are free to use. But despite the obvious advantages, experts, including the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), are expressing serious concerns about the security of this new payment method. Gailtal Journal reports that the lack of retrievability in instant transfers is seen as particularly problematic as it makes it easier for perpetrators to quickly move stolen money.

Although the new transfers are a practical solution, the introduction is likely to lead to an increase in fraud attempts. Experts warn that there is little change in the fight against fraud, but the need for prevention measures is increasing. The BKA plans to focus more on prevention, particularly through technical protective measures aimed at protecting users from fraud in connection with instant transfers.

The challenges of instant transfers

The implementation of a traffic light system to improve the security of transfers is particularly important. This system evaluates the match between IBAN and recipient name:

• Grün: IBAN und Empfängername stimmen überein.
• Gelb: Geringfügige Abweichungen mit Korrekturvorschlag.
• Rot: Empfehlung zur erneuten Überprüfung der Daten.
• Grau: Abgleich aus technischen Gründen nicht möglich.

Nevertheless, the BKA shows that this technical check does not offer any guarantee against fraud. Users should still remember that they are responsible for their transfers. It is advisable to only make real-time transfers to trusted recipients and to use secure payment services with buyer protection for online purchases.

Beware of attempted fraud

Another warning sign of potential fraud is urging immediate transfers via phone, email or social media. It is important to regularly inform yourself about current fraud trends and act carefully. The BKA emphasizes that despite efforts to improve security measures, the possibility that a payment request is fraudulent still exists.

In addition, “recipient verification” will be introduced. This measure checks whether the specified name of the payee matches the name stored with the bank for the specified IBAN. Users can decide whether they want to carry out the transfer or check the recipient details again. Bundesbank explains that this procedure is intended to make errors and fraud more difficult, but does not replace the user's own duty of care.