![[CAPTION] Mouna Eksteen, CEO of XTND.](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/XFWwxW8F16SNmCc23CuhOVv5CQGvPC57fvwGk_jfHEsd83CDdA2l4NL4Mf3C3759P2yrLvjDuNo9zRjO7Y4PzNogr0DyG4PVh7Tl)
Fraud prevention company XTND identified fraud in one in every five insurance claims investigated through its Veritas platform over the past year, helping insurers prevent more than R100 million in payouts, it says.
Developed in 2011 as a web-based solution, the Veritas platform combines predictive modelling with identity verification, document analysis, business rules and information shared across participating insurers, to identify patterns that may not be visible within a single company’s records.
Mouna Eksteen, CEO of XTND, tells ITWeb that in 2026, Veritas assessed more than 150 000 claims, with over 10 000 flagged as carrying sufficient risk to warrant further investigation.
Of the claims investigated, more than 2 100 were found to be fraudulent, highlighting the role of cross-market data in identifying suspicious claims that might otherwise pass individual insurers’ checks, she explains.
“Veritas combines several specialised engines: fraud modelling, multiple-claim prediction, Home Affairs identity verification, OCR document reading, customised business rules and real-time integrations. Together, they produce one scorecard that answers a simple question: pay or investigate?
“The platform’s risk-scoring approach allows investigators to focus on claims with the strongest fraud indicators, rather than manually examining every submission. Our investigators go where the risk is, not through every claim,” she says.
While Veritas uses artificial intelligence (AI), its power is not in an AI label; it is in connecting patterns across the market that no single insurer can see, while the final decision stays with the insurer, she adds.
According to Eksteen, cross-market visibility is particularly important in funeral insurance, where organised syndicates can distribute policies and claims across multiple providers to avoid detection.
XTND’s target market includes insurance companies, banks, financial services institutions, and large corporate and government bodies seeking to prevent fraud, manage risk and strengthen regulatory compliance.
Cross-market data
The value of this approach was demonstrated by a recent real case study, involving a woman who died in Mozambique several years ago, but whose death was registered again in South Africa this year.
People claiming to be members of her extended family subsequently lodged funeral insurance claims of R50 000 each with four different insurers between 26 August and 2 September.
The claims were submitted against recently purchased policies and included supporting documentation and a death registration at Home Affairs.
Veritas linked the claims through the shared deceased person, the timing of the submissions and connections to a doctor and funeral parlour associated with 25 other claims in the platform’s database.
All four claims were flagged as high risk and subsequently repudiated following an investigation.
XTND says its field investigators eventually obtained admissions from three people involved in the case, including a funeral parlour representative who admitted registering the false death and an informant who said he had paid the representative R5 000 to do so.
One claimant also admitted never having known the woman and that the death had been fabricated. The investigation was completed within 14 days of the initial flag, according to XTND.
“Each insurer saw a registered death, a family member claiming and an ordinary amount, so nothing in its own records gave it a reason to stop the payment,” says Eksteen. “What gave it away was Veritas putting the four claims side by side, for the same woman and in the same week. No insurer can see that on its own. The pattern only shows when you look at claims across the market.”
She warns that fraudulent insurance activity can extend beyond financial losses, pointing to cases in which people are allegedly insured without their knowledge and killed for the proceeds.
“This is not just about protecting money. It is about protecting lives,” she says.
Fraud watch
Claim volumes grew by 60% between 2024 and 2025, as insurers expanded their use of the Veritas platform. By late October 2026, volumes had reached approximately 94% of the previous year’s total, according to Eksteen.
She attributes the growth to new insurers joining the platform and existing clients progressively submitting more claims for assessment after testing its performance.
“Most insurers start by sending a portion of their claims, test the results, and then put more through as the scorecard proves itself,” she says. “That steady, earned trust is the growth we value most.”
The broader 2026 operational figures supplied by XTND indicate Veritas received more than 300 000 claims during its financial year, with 91% risk-scored and finalised in under four hours.
The wider industry has also reported an increase in insurance fraud. The Association for Savings and Investment South Africa recorded 5 505 fraudulent and dishonest life insurance claims in 2024, up from 4 130 in 2023, according to XTND.
Platform expands
XTND plans to extend Veritas over the next 12 months, with the objective to identify risk earlier in the insurance lifecycle.
“We are extending it into new business and underwritten life, so that risk is scored before a policy is even accepted, covering the full journey, from on-boarding to claims,” notes Eksteen.
The company also intends to expand the network of participating insurers and refine its fraud and multiple-claim prediction models.
Eksteen says broader participation reduces the opportunities for syndicates to exploit gaps between insurers, while earlier risk assessment could help prevent suspicious policies from entering the system.
“With funeral claims typically rising from late August to mid-January, insurers face a period in which rapid claims processing and fraud detection must operate together. For insurers, the challenge is to preserve the speed and accessibility of funeral benefits without allowing fraudulent claims to exploit standard verification processes,” she concludes.
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