Retail fraud has become a major challenge for modern commerce. As ecommerce has expanded, fraudsters have become increasingly sophisticated, employing everything from automated bots and account takeovers to phishing campaigns and synthetic identities. The costs extend far beyond the value of a fraudulent transaction itself, encompassing chargebacks, operational expenses, customer service costs and reputational damage.
The issue is particularly relevant for Canadian retailers. Canadians reported more than $704 million in fraud losses in 2025, according to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, marking the highest annual total on record. Authorities estimate that only five to 10 per cent of fraud incidents are reported, meaning the true financial impact is likely far greater. Meanwhile, ecommerce continues to grow, digital payments are becoming increasingly commonplace, and retailers are investing heavily in automation and artificial intelligence throughout their businesses.
For merchants, the challenge is balancing strong security with a smooth customer experience.
Worldpay, a global payments technology company, believes the industry is approaching another major turning point the industry is approaching another major turning point. Drawing on its experience helping merchants process digital payments around the world, the company expects AI-powered shopping agents to play a growing role in how consumers discover products and complete purchases. That evolution creates new opportunities for retailers while introducing new questions about trust, authentication and fraud prevention.
Artificial intelligence is changing not only how fraud is committed, but also how consumers shop.
The Rise of Agentic Commerce
Worldpay refers to this emerging shift as agentic commerce — a model in which AI-powered assistants can research products, compare prices and, with a consumer’s permission, complete purchases on their behalf. While the concept is still in its early stages, major payments companies and technology providers have already begun building the infrastructure to support it.
Early forms of AI-assisted shopping are already influencing consumer behaviour. Research from Adobe found that traffic to retail websites originating from generative AI tools surged dramatically over the past year, underscoring how quickly consumers are becoming comfortable with AI-assisted experiences.
Over time, autonomous agents may handle more routine purchasing decisions, helping consumers discover products, compare offers and complete transactions with minimal effort.
For retailers, the opportunities are significant. AI agents could simplify purchasing decisions, improve convenience and create more personalized shopping experiences.
The technology also raises new questions. How does a merchant know whether an AI agent is acting on behalf of a legitimate customer? How should an autonomous purchase be authenticated? Who is responsible if an AI agent makes an unauthorized purchase?
The future of agentic commerce will depend heavily on trust.
Fraud Is Becoming More Sophisticated
Retailers do not have the luxury of waiting to address these questions.
Bad actors are increasingly using advanced technologies of their own. Artificial intelligence is making it easier for criminals to launch attacks at scale, create convincing impersonations and identify weaknesses in digital commerce environments.
The threat landscape is becoming increasingly sophisticated and continues to evolve rapidly.
Traditional, rules-based approaches to fraud prevention can struggle to keep pace with these emerging threats. Criminals constantly adapt their tactics, forcing merchants to respond just as quickly.
Fraud prevention increasingly depends on systems that can continuously learn, adapt and identify new patterns of risk.
Why Machine Learning Matters
Many retailers are turning to machine learning to help identify suspicious activity and protect legitimate transactions. Companies such as Worldpay are investing heavily in machine learning and advanced fraud prevention technologies that can help merchants better distinguish between genuine customers and potentially fraudulent activity.
Machine learning models can analyse vast amounts of data in real time, identifying patterns and signals that would be impossible for human teams to process manually. These systems continuously evolve as fraud tactics change.
Machine learning can also help merchants avoid unnecessary friction.
One of the biggest challenges in digital commerce is distinguishing between a genuine customer and a fraudulent actor without creating barriers that discourage legitimate purchases. Excessive security measures can lead to checkout abandonment, frustrated customers and lost sales.
Advanced machine learning technologies seek to strike the right balance by helping merchants identify risky behaviour while prioritizing genuine transactions and preserving a smooth customer experience. As the payments landscape evolves, machine learning is becoming a foundational technology for fraud prevention. Worldpay’s fraud prevention capabilities are designed to analyse broad and complex data across the customer journey, helping merchants make more informed decisions in real time while adapting to increasingly sophisticated threats.
Preparing for an Autonomous Future
The emergence of AI-powered shopping agents does not mean retailers need to start from scratch.
Many of the signals that help determine whether a transaction is legitimate today will remain relevant in the future. Transaction behaviour, device information, account history and purchasing patterns will continue to play an important role in fraud prevention.
According to Worldpay’s research into agentic commerce, approximately 80 per cent of today’s fraud signals are expected to remain relevant even as autonomous transactions become more commonplace. Worldpay believes the challenge for merchants will be understanding the new signals that emerge as AI agents increasingly participate in commerce.
Preparing for this transition is not simply about adopting new technology. It also means working with payments and fraud prevention partners that continue to invest in machine learning, behavioural analytics and emerging authentication methods to help merchants stay ahead of evolving threats.
Machine learning that can process broad and complex data across multiple touchpoints in the customer journey are likely to play a critical role in helping merchants determine whether a transaction should be trusted, regardless of whether the purchaser is a person or an AI agent acting on their behalf.
Trust Will Determine Adoption
Consumer interest in AI-assisted shopping is growing, but so are concerns surrounding identity theft, unauthorized purchases, fraud and loss of financial control.
Worldpay’s research found that while many consumers are open to allowing AI agents to shop on their behalf, fraud protection remains one of the most important factors influencing trust in these experiences.
For agentic commerce to achieve widespread adoption, retailers and payment providers will need to demonstrate that these new experiences are secure, transparent and easy to control.
Fraud prevention is no longer simply about stopping bad actors.
It is also about building confidence in new forms of commerce.
Retailers that embrace innovation while maintaining trust in every transaction will be well positioned for the next phase of digital commerce.
Looking Ahead
Artificial intelligence is reshaping retail rapidly. The same technologies creating new opportunities for consumers and merchants are also creating new challenges for fraud prevention.
As autonomous shopping experiences begin to emerge, the ability to distinguish legitimate activity from malicious behaviour will become increasingly important.
Commerce is becoming more intelligent and more automated.
Retailers that begin preparing today will be better positioned to navigate both the opportunities and the risks that lie ahead.
For retailers, preparing for this transition is not simply about adopting new technology. It also means having payment and fraud prevention systems that can adapt as the way consumers shop changes.
Worldpay offers a range of fraud prevention and payment technologies designed to support that transition, including credential management and advanced fraud detection capabilities. These tools can help retailers protect legitimate transactions today while preparing for a future in which AI agents play a greater role in the shopping and payment process.
Retailers looking to strengthen their fraud prevention strategies or prepare for agentic commerce can learn more about Worldpay’s fraud prevention solutions and its work around the future of AI-powered payments.
