Fraud friction is the set of extra verification steps that make suspicious activity harder to complete. It can include step-up authentication, identity checks, liveness verification, document review, device risk scoring, or manual approval. The goal is not to stop every user, but to slow high-risk actions enough to expose abuse and force attackers to reveal themselves.
In cyber security, fraud friction matters because many attacks depend on speed, automation, and low resistance. If an attacker can create accounts, take over sessions, or cash out stolen assets without challenge, the abuse scales quickly. Good fraud friction raises the cost of those attacks while keeping the path smooth for legitimate users. Defenders tune it carefully: too little friction invites fraud; too much creates user drop-off and support burden. In practice, the best controls are layered and risk-based, so only suspicious behavior gets the extra checks.