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2026 Identity & Payments Summit Recap: AI Transforms Fraud, Agentic Commerce and Digital Identity in Action
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Secure Technology Alliance is celebrating the success of its 2026 Identity & Payments Summit in Houston, Texas. The Summit brought together hundreds of cross-industry decision-makers to spotlight innovation and explore how trust is being maintained as AI accelerates fraud, digital identity gains traction and the payments ecosystem braces for more autonomous forms of commerce.
“Today’s market demands a more connected approach to trust,” said Jatin Deshpande, chair of the Secure Technology Alliance Board of Directors. “The conversations at this year’s Summit made clear that identity, payments and authentication can no longer evolve in parallel. They are converging in ways that will define how organizations fight fraud and build confidence in the next generation of digital transactions.”
That theme came through early in the event’s keynote, “Building Trust with Strangers – Identity’s Crucial Role in a Safe Payments Ecosystem,” delivered by Michael Schweiger of Airbnb. Schweiger pointed to a future in which identity assurance is embedded more deeply into transaction infrastructure, particularly as digital wallets and reusable credentials become more commonplace. This shift in the identity industry has surfaced new challenges. For example, when a trusted credential already exists, should customers have to start the identity process over from scratch when they acquire new devices or sign up for new services? Schweiger asserts that identity is no longer just a checkpoint layered onto commerce. It is increasingly becoming part of the underlying infrastructure that makes digital transactions possible, and we must work together to facilitate frictionless and seamless experiences across the board.
AI proliferation outpaces legacy fraud controls
One of the clearest takeaways from the Summit is that AI-driven fraud is making a notable impact on the payments and identity ecosystems. It’s lowering the barrier for entry and enabling fraudsters to act with unprecedented efficiency and sophistication.
According to the founder of Gifted Books and Gifted Coaching, a risk management executive with 20+ years of experience, fraud has moved well beyond traditional first-party and third-party models. Synthetic identities are allowing bad actors to build trust with businesses over time and once they’ve extracted enough value, whether that be sensitive data or funds, they disappear. The General Manager of Identity and Payments Risk at Early Warning added that AI is amplifying synthetic and false identities and accelerating transaction fraud. This is forcing organizations across the industry to rethink how they layer risk signals to detect it. The discussion emphasized that cross-functional collaboration is needed to distinguish synthetic and false identities, maintain trust, and continue to combat these scams that originate upstream.
The Summit made it clear that legacy fraud controls will fall behind AI. Real-time approaches to fraud will be paramount to keep pace. Many Summit participants warned that identity verification is often just a snapshot in time, which is no longer enough when businesses are contending with deepfake technology and LLMs that can generate high-quality fake documents in a matter of minutes. A representative with HID built on that point, explaining that authentication is shifting away from binary checkpoints and toward continuous trust assessment that adapts to context and risk. Stronger trust now depends on layered signals such as behavioral analytics, device intelligence and adaptive authentication that work in tandem, not just one-time checks at onboarding or login.
Agentic commerce becomes top-of-mind
Agentic commerce has exploded in popularity in recent months, forcing identity and payments stakeholders to distinguish between hype and what’s truly feasible. Many agreed that while agent-assisted shopping is already taking shape, fully agentic payments remain in very early stages. The most pressing concern is whether the ecosystem can support the agentic model safely and consistently. A speaker with Bank of America shared that issuers rely on transaction data to make sound risk decisions and that current agentic payment protocols do not yet offer enough clarity around what information will be shared or how agent involvement will be disclosed.
The Summit also explored how agentic commerce could influence the relationship between merchants, issuers and customers overall. Speakers noted that agents may eventually influence not just checkout, but product discovery, offer selection and even loyalty engagement. Industry giants may be primed to meet this challenge, however, there are concerns around smaller merchants not having the resources to adapt if agent-driven experiences become a new competitive layer. Attendees also pondered ways to effectively communicate consumer intent, define delegation of authority and distinguish legitimate agent-assisted activity from high-velocity or bot-like behavior. The consensus is not that agentic commerce is too risky to pursue. It’s that the ecosystem still has foundational work to do around transparency and shared expectations before agentic commerce can scale with confidence.
Mobile driver’s licenses aim for everyday utility
Mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs) and other wallet-based credentials have gained momentum over the past year. In a multi-state discussion featuring representatives from Ohio, New York, Virginia, Georgia and California, speakers shared successes with practical use cases. Georgia now has roughly 638,000 active mDL users and is adding about 40,000 more each month. California reports 3.2 million issued credentials, with about 1.8 million unique mDL-holders. The state has also collaborated with technology providers to create open-source tools designed to make it easier for relying parties (like law enforcement and merchants) to begin accepting mDLs as a valid form of identification. According to the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA), about 45 percent of the U.S. population can now access ISO-compliant mDLs.
Instead of focusing on abstract promises, sessions at the 2026 Summit emphasized real-world mDL implementation happening now. In Ohio, mDLs are being used for age-restricted alcohol vending at Ohio State University athletic events, allowing students to purchase items from unattended machines. mDLs are being used for traditional concession sales as well. A representative with Virginia’s Department of Motor Vehicles shared that mDLs readers are in place at Virginia Commonwealth University athletic games and campus law enforcement has begun accepting the credentials. Although mDLs are progressing at a steady pace, there are still barriers to adoption.
Mobile Driver’s License (mDL) Issuers Will Collaborate with Business
In a panel led by Decipher.id, five states discussed their plans and incentives to give their residents places to use their mDL. These states are examples of business and government working together to advance privacy and control over identity for their residents. Issuers are seeking businesses for age-verification, eGov login, in-person and banking use cases. The technology is becoming widespread. The challenge now is gaining adoption from businesses within each state.
Organizations, associations, government agencies and individuals interested in participating in upcoming Alliance projects and events, like the Identity & Payments Summit, should visit the Alliance’s website to learn how to become a member. By joining the Alliance, members will have access to activities within its affiliated U.S. Payments Forum and Identity and Access Forum. For continuing updates on the Secure Technology Alliance, visit the organization’s LinkedIn page.
About the Secure Technology Alliance
The Secure Technology Alliance is the digital security industry’s premier association. Through its U.S. Payments Forum, Identity and Access Forum and its collaborative working groups, the Alliance fosters open dialogue among industry stakeholders to explore and develop secure technology innovations in the payments, identity and access markets. By collaborating on education and guidance, the Alliance helps enable efficient, timely and effective implementation of large-scale, disruptive technologies.
Contact:
Sherlyn Rijos-Altman
Montner Tech PR
Srijos@montner.com
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