Fraud isn’t slowing down, it’s evolving. The Banking on Fraudology podcast is now Fraud Forward, and we’re kicking off the new era with a no-nonsense look at what financial institutions are actually facing on the front lines.

In this premiere episode, host Hailey Windham brings together fraud, risk, and BSA leaders from banks and credit unions to separate real signals from industry noise. No hype. No fear-mongering. Just firsthand insight from teams fighting fraud at machine speed.

We unpack:

1. What fraud teams saw escalate over the past year
2. Which threats are accelerating into 2026
3. Where banks and credit unions remain most exposed
4. How digital arrest scams, Ghost Tap fraud, and self-adapting AI attacks are changing the game
5. Why in-branch controls are making a comeback

If you’re responsible for fraud prevention, BSA, risk, or compliance, this episode offers clear, realistic guidance on what to prioritize now, and what needs to change as fraud keeps moving faster.

🎙 Guest lineup:

Karen Boyer, SVP, Financial Crimes - M&T Bank

Jen Lamont, BSA & Fraud Manager - America’s Credit Union

Angela Diaz, Senior Risk Manager, External Fraud Oversight - TD

Hailey Windham, Host of Fraud Forward & Community Banking Lead - Sardine

👉 Subscribe for more real-world fraud insights from the people closest to the risk.

In this episode of Banking on Fraudology, Hailey Windham reflects on her journey in the industry by sharing big news and zooming out to address the "seismic shift" this change represents for her career and the community.

Hailey officially announces she has joined Sardine as their Community Lead for Banking. She directly addresses industry skepticism, clarifying that this move is a values-aligned, impact-driven decision and "not a sellout moment".

The conversation dives into the industry's evolution , highlighting how shared learning, cross-institution conversations, and an authentic community are shaping the future of fraud prevention.

Belief and Values Alignment are Essential: The "Why" Behind the Decision

• The Trust Filter: Hailey notes that she only puts her name behind brands she trusts and never stays silent for convenience.
• Culture Over Tech: What stood out about Sardine was its culture of humility and curiosity, and a willingness to say, "We don't have this all figured out. Let's build it with the community".
• Voice and Ownership: Crucially, she was never asked to change her voice , and she retains ownership of her catalog.

Scaling Impact (Internal Threat): The Shift from Individual to Community

• Hailey explains that the role isn't about pushing product; it's about building authentic banking and credit union communities and challenging the status quo.
• This move is about scaling impact—moving from helping one or two credit unions at a time to having a much bigger reach and connecting them with resources.
• The goal is to move past institutional silos, driven by the mindset that "fraud doesn't happen in silos and neither should our solutions".

Fraud Forward (External Threats): The Podcast Evolves Alongside the Industry

• Banking on Fraudology is evolving and will be rebranded as Fraud Forward.
• The rebrand will bring improved production quality, consistency, and reach, allowing for bigger, bolder conversations.
• Hailey promises the same honesty, hard conversations, and advocacy for fraud fighters will continue.

Get in the mood of being grateful for the fraud-fighting community, and be reminded of how strong the fraud-fighting community truly is. The next chapter is about moving fraud prevention forward together.

In this bonus episode of Banking on Fraudology, powered by Safeguard , Hailey Windham talks with Ben Graf, a self-taught AI expert in the neobank space. Ben embodies the spirit of curiosity and courage driving the next wave of fraud-fighting transformation.

The conversation dives into what it really looks like to learn AI from the ground up, emphasizing that the future of fraud prevention isn't about replacing people, but empowering them through technology.

Key Takeaways: AI, Innovation, and Fraud-Fighting Empowerment

Using AI to Learn AI: Ben explains how he used varying LLM chats (like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini) as a coach or mentor, experimenting for hours to understand their capabilities, consistency, and how to effectively prompt them.

• This approach helped him translate technical language and practices (like data analysis, SQL, and JavaScript) into actionable knowledge for his team, breaking down communication barriers.
• The hardest part was knowing where to start, but the key was realizing that "something is better than nothing" and compounding knowledge quickly breaks down barriers.

Practical AI Applications for Eliminating Busy Work: AI should be used to make teams more efficient and help professionals focus strategically.

• Automating Document Verification: AI can use OCR to pull data, flag inconsistencies, and serve up summaries for identity, business, and income documents, which are often the most time-consuming parts of a review.
• Data Retrieval and System Silos: AI can help team members write their own SQL queries to retrieve data from data warehouses, dramatically reducing requests to the data team.
• Product and Feature Proposals: AI tools can mock up full dashboard concepts and even provide code snippets to give engineers a visual and break down communication barriers between fraud and technical teams.

The Power of Empowerment and Buy-In: Leadership should create a culture where fraud fighters are empowered to explore and innovate.

• The magic of time savings lies in filling the time freed from "busy work" (like false positives) with new, high-impact tasks, whether that's cost savings in fraud loss or better customer retention.
• Teams are advised to keep proprietary or PII information out of the loop and find safe spaces to explore, remembering that everyone is still figuring out what AI can do.

Get in the mood of being grateful for the fraud-fighting community, and be reminded of how strong the fraud-fighting community truly is.

About Hailey Windham:

As a 2023 CU Rockstar Recipient, Hailey Windham, CFCS (Certified Financial Crimes Specialist) demonstrated unbounding passion for educating her community, organization and credit union membership on scams in the market and best practices to avoid them. She has implemented several programs within her previous organizations that aim at holistically learning about how to prevent and detect fraud targeted at membership and employees.

Windham’s initiatives to build strong relationships and partnerships throughout the credit union community and industry experts have led to countless success stories. Her applied knowledge of payments system programs combined with her experience in fraud investigations offers practical concepts that are transferable, no matter the organization’s size.

Connect with Hailey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hailey-windham/