Introducing the ‘Know Your Agent’ Framework for the Age of Agentic Commerce

As digital commerce becomes increasingly automated, enterprises face a new identity challenge: distinguishing legitimate AI agents acting on behalf of customers from malicious bots designed to exploit digital systems.

“How Enterprises Can Build a ‘Know Your Agent’ Defense: Digital Identity Verification in the Age of Bots” explores how the rise of agentic commerce is exposing weaknesses in traditional identity models like Know Your Customer (KYC) and Know Your Business (KYB). And why organizations must add a third layer: Know Your Agent (KYA).

Based on a survey of 350 global risk, compliance and fraud leaders, the research informs a framework for addressing one of the most pernicious problems in digital commerce: the rise of bot traffic. Nearly 90% of enterprises report that bot management is now a major challenge. Outdated digital identity controls are costing businesses nearly $100 billion annually in fraud, false declines and lost customers.

As automation spreads across onboarding, transactions and supplier workflows, enterprises must move beyond static identity checks toward continuous verification frameworks that authenticate not just people and businesses—but also the autonomous agents acting on their behalf.

Inside “How Enterprises Can Build a ‘Know Your Agent’ Defense: Digital Identity Verification in the Age of Bots”:

Automation is reshaping the threat landscape for digital businesses. Bots now perform many of the same actions as human users, from creating accounts to initiating transactions. This makes it harder for companies to identify malicious activity and prevent fraud before it spreads across digital systems.

Identity verification failures create operational drag and customer frustration. When verification systems cannot reliably distinguish between legitimate and harmful activity, businesses end up blocking good users. This can delay onboarding and increase manual reviews. These problems reduce conversion rates and slow growth.

A new identity framework can help organizations manage the rise of AI agents. Enterprises are beginning to adopt layered approaches to this shift. These approaches combine identity verification, permission controls and real-time monitoring to determine whether a user has authorized an automated agent to act on their behalf.

Download the Framework How Enterprises Can Build a ‘Know Your Agent’ Defense: Digital Identity Verification in the Age of Bots

About the Framework

“How Enterprises Can Build a ‘Know Your Agent’ Defense: Digital Identity Verification in the Age of Bots” is a PYMNTS Intelligence collaboration with Trulioo. The report draws on insights from a survey of 350 leaders in compliance, risk management, fraud, underwriting, supplier acquisition and merchant monitoring at global companies, conducted from Aug. 1, 2025, to Sept. 10, 2025.