Credit application fraud is at its highest level since 2009, according to data drawn from Veda's fraud database.Fraud is up by 27 per cent over the past year and of the common types of credit application fraud - false personal details, fabrication of identity, identity takeover and undisclosed debts - identity takeover grew fastest.Veda's general manager of fraud and identity solutions, Imelda Newton, said the increase was explained, in part, by the growth in lending.Newton added: "However, the real driver has been a change in the way individuals and criminal gangs are using new technologies to exploit and defraud credit providers."Identity takeover now accounts for 89 per cent of identity fraud. Forensic specialist Brett Warfield, of Warfield and Associates, said improvements in identity verification were making false identities less viable and forcing fraudsters to use identity takeover.Last week, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority issued a practice guide for mortgage lending, which had a strong focus on the risks posed when loans were originated by third parties.Newton said the increase in the level of fraud coincided with the growth in the share of mortgages originated by brokers but she would not be drawn whether a fraud was more likely if a broker was involved."When fraud occurs it is not just brokers involved in it. There might also be valuers, accountants and developers," Newton said.