Recorded frauds increased by 25 per cent last year, according to the latest report from the UK fraud prevention trade body Cifas. In total, 276,993 frauds were recorded in 2014, compared to 221,075 in 2013.
The single biggest threat continues to be identity fraud – 41 per cent of all frauds recorded in 2014 fall into this category. Identity fraud is when criminals abuse personal data or identity details to impersonate an innocent victim or to create fictitious identities to steal money. Some 113, 839 identity frauds were recorded, a five per cent rise on 2013. The average age for identity victims is 46, and men were 1.7 times more likely than women to have their identity stolen;
Young adults are increasingly becoming targets – the number of young adult identity fraud victims aged between 21 to 30 has increased by 51.7 per cent since 2011, from 9,789 to 14,850. This suggests that as digitally savvy young people enter their 20s and increase their access to financial products, they are increasingly at risk.
That said, older groups are still at risk – there was a 15 per cent rise in the numbers of identity fraud victims aged over 55, with 25,346 in 2014 compared to 22,004 in 2013.
That rise in identity fraud was accompanied by a drop in take-over of accounts (where fraudsters hack into or “take over” existing accounts). According to Cifas these trends underline criminals’ ability to adapt – as it has become harder to take over accounts due to better security, criminals have shifted their attention to using other people’s identities, or creating entirely false identities, to open new ones.
By working across sectors, Cifas members such as banks prevented an estimated £1 billion of fraud in 2014, it is claimed. Cifas fraud cases are streamed daily to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, run by the City of London Police.
Simon Dukes, Cifas Chief Executive, said: “The frauds we are recording point to increasingly sophisticated, predatory and organised criminals. This is crime at an industrial scale. We need to redouble our efforts to fight fraud across sectors and to educate consumers and people of all ages. Fraudsters don’t operate in silos, and neither can we. We also need better data – this data is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the scale of fraud in the UK.”
The report makes recommendations:
· The UK needs a national measure of fraud losses. Until we understand the scale of the loss, society cannot truly tackle it.
· Greater research is needed into the exact point where data is compromised. Cifas says that members cannot always know at what point their customers’ identities have been compromised and victims often do not know themselves. Yet this information would be vital in focusing prevention efforts.
· Further research into the involvement of organised criminals. This year’s data provides further evidence that organised criminals are behind numerous fraud trends.
· A co-ordinated education and awareness campaign on fraud, jointly by Government and industry. People of all ages need to be savvier to frauds, and fraudsters, to protect themselves better. Fraud trends suggest that some may be allowing their details and accounts to be used by criminals, without a full understanding of the seriousness of the crime.
· A review of the sentencing guidelines for fraud. The public must have faith that when frauds are reported, criminals are punished appropriately. This will also encourage people to report fraud.
The report is based on fraud cases from 245 Cifas Members. Cifas Members span a range of sectors and the data is a sound barometer for fraud trends in the UK. However it is not the full picture and the true numbers of frauds and victims will be higher, the trade body adds.
