What is the Shopify fraud filter?

Shopify's fraud filter is a built-in fraud analysis that scores orders using signals like AVS and CVV results, proxy detection, and past chargebacks. On Shopify Payments stores you can also create fraud filter rules that flag or cancel matching orders automatically.

How do I turn on Shopify's fraud filter?

Go to Settings → Checkout and payments, enable fraud prevention options such as CVV and postal code verification, then open Settings → Fraud (or the Fraud filters section) to add rules. Shopify shows the fraud analysis on each order's detail page.

Does Shopify verify that the customer is real?

No. Shopify scores the order but never contacts the shopper. It cannot confirm that the person placing the order controls the email address, phone number, or payment method. That gap is what OTP and ID verification close.

Do I still need a fraud app if I use Shopify's fraud filter?

For low-risk, low-value stores the native filter is often enough. High-ticket, COD, or heavily targeted stores usually need real-time scoring across all channels plus customer verification and automated alerts, which the native filter does not provide.

Guide

Shopify fraud filter: how to set it up and where it stops working

Shopify's native fraud filter is a solid first line of defence — and it is only a scoring engine. This guide walks through enabling it, writing useful filter rules, and closing the gaps it leaves behind.

What Shopify's fraud filter actually does

Every order on Shopify gets a fraud analysis. Shopify checks a set of signals and shows them as indicators on the order page, plus a low / medium / high risk level on Shopify Payments stores:

Card verification (CVV) and address verification (AVS) results
Whether the billing country matches the IP or shipping country
Proxy, VPN, or anonymised connection detection
Prior chargebacks or high-risk history tied to the card or customer
Unusual order velocity — many orders from the same device in a short window

Fraud filters (the rule builder) let you go one step further: write a condition and have Shopify flag, hold, or cancel the matching order automatically.

How to set up the Shopify fraud filter

Turn on card checks. In your Shopify admin go to Settings → Payments and, under Shopify Payments, enable CVV and billing postal code verification so declines happen before the order is created.
Review the fraud analysis. Open any order and scroll to the Fraud analysis card. Use it to learn what "normal" looks like for your store before you automate anything.
Create fraud filters. In Settings → Fraud, add rules such as "risk level is high", "billing country ≠ shipping country", or "order total is over $X". Start in flag-only mode.
Choose an action. Flag for manual review first. Only move to auto-cancel once a rule has run clean for a few weeks — auto-cancel on a noisy rule costs real revenue.
Check false positives weekly. Filter your orders by the flag and confirm the cancelled ones really were fraud.

Where the native fraud filter falls short

The filter scores an order and then stops. It has no way to confirm the shopper is who they claim to be, and it only sees orders that go through Shopify Payments.

Shopify fraud filter compared with FraudLock
Capability	Shopify fraud filter	FraudLock
Risk score on every order	Yes	Yes
Rules that flag or cancel orders	Yes	Yes
OTP email verification of the buyer	No	Yes
ID document review for high-risk orders	No	Yes
Works on COD and manual payment orders	No	Yes
Instant alert email when an order is risky	No	Yes
Works outside Shopify Payments / other platforms	No	Yes
One dashboard across stores	No	Yes

The biggest gap is verification. A stolen card with a matching AVS result looks clean to any scoring engine. Asking the buyer to confirm a one-time code — or upload an ID on the highest-risk orders — is the only signal that separates a real customer from a fraudster holding valid card details.

Using FraudLock alongside Shopify's filter

Keep Shopify's filter on. FraudLock sits on top of it: it scores every order in real time (including COD and non-Shopify-Payments orders), emails you the moment something risky lands, and lets you send an OTP or ID verification request to the customer before you ship. Verified orders clear automatically; unverified ones never leave the warehouse.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Shopify fraud filter?: Shopify's fraud filter is a built-in fraud analysis that scores orders using signals like AVS and CVV results, proxy detection, and past chargebacks. On Shopify Payments stores you can also create fraud filter rules that flag or cancel matching orders automatically.
How do I turn on Shopify's fraud filter?: Go to Settings → Checkout and payments, enable fraud prevention options such as CVV and postal code verification, then open Settings → Fraud (or the Fraud filters section) to add rules. Shopify shows the fraud analysis on each order's detail page.
Does Shopify verify that the customer is real?: No. Shopify scores the order but never contacts the shopper. It cannot confirm that the person placing the order controls the email address, phone number, or payment method. That gap is what OTP and ID verification close.
Do I still need a fraud app if I use Shopify's fraud filter?: For low-risk, low-value stores the native filter is often enough. High-ticket, COD, or heavily targeted stores usually need real-time scoring across all channels plus customer verification and automated alerts, which the native filter does not provide.