Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Multi-Factor Authentication on Mobile Banking Fraud in Kano State

Multi-factor authentication is widely recommended as a primary control against mobile banking cybercrime, and empirically characterising its actual protective effect in the Nigerian mobile banking ecosystem provides evidence for regulatory enforcement and consumer adoption advocacy. This study empirically analysed the relationship between MFA adoption and mobile banking fraud victimisation among customers of commercial banks in Kano State, North West Nigeria. A retrospective cohort design was employed, comparing mobile banking fraud victimisation rates between 150 MFA-enabled users and 150 non-MFA-enabled users, recruited through bank branch sampling in Kano Municipal and Fagge LGAs. Fraud victimisation was assessed through self-report and bank record confirmation over a 24-month retrospective window. Logistic regression was applied to control for confounders. Results showed that MFA-enabled users had an odds ratio of 0.21 for mobile banking fraud victimisation compared to non-MFA users (95 percent CI: 0.13 to 0.34, p < 0.001), representing approximately 79 percent reduction in victimisation odds after controlling for transaction frequency, income, and device type. SIM swap attacks were the primary method circumventing MFA in 34.8 percent of MFA user victimisations. The study provides empirical evidence for MFA effectiveness in northern Nigerian mobile banking and recommends CBN mandate MFA as a minimum requirement for all mobile banking applications, alongside telco-bank SIM swap notification protocols. Keywords: multi-factor authentication, mobile banking fraud, victimisation prevention, Kano State, MFA effectiveness