Synthetic identity fraud has been called one of the fastest-growing financial crimes in the U.S., costing financial institutions (FIs) north of $6 billion a year. By way of background, synthetic identities are most commonly created by combining real information, such as a legitimate Social Security number, and fictitious information, which can include a false name, address or date of birth — or they can be entirely fictitious. It has become a larger problem throughout the pandemic, particularly at the point of onboarding.