The Yorkshire-based Business Crime Reduction Centre is running free training events around the region to alert businesses to the threat of identity theft and the various types of fraud that this data can enable.
David Ransom, Director of the Business Crime Reduction Centre pointed out that individuals and businesses are at risk. “The amount of information which is available about us and our employers is staggering. To check this out I would encourage people to type their first and last name into several search engines. They should search for images as well as text. Through these free sessions on fraud we are aiming to alert businesses and their employees as to how vulnerable they can be. The irony is that prevention can be quite straightforward, but if people are not aware they are unlikely to take steps to protect themselves.”
The next Business Crime Reduction Centre fraud event is scheduled for Friday, September 6, at the Village Hotel, Hull. To book a free place at the event businesses should visit www.bcrc-uk.org <http://www.bcrc-uk.org> or call 0114 275 1283.
Background
The National Fraud Authority points to ‘identity exploitation’ as one of the key enablers for fraud and online crime.
As more of us and businesses have an online presence, without the appropriate safety precautions, key pieces of information that make up our identity become available for fraudsters and cybercriminals to harvest. A study commissioned by Microsoft found that less than half of the adult population give any thought to the long-term consequences of their online activities. The most recent Annual Fraud Indicator estimates that fraud costs the UK £52 billion per year. Worryingly for Yorkshire local economy £9.54 billion of those losses are suffered by small and medium sized businesses.
The key element of a person’s identity include seemingly innocuous pieces of information such as name, address, date of birth, email address, family history. They are stolen in a variety of ways, not only digitally but through the careless disposal of letters and bills. When these separate pieces of information are put together a fraudster can assume someone’s identity and put it to use for other criminal acts.
The Business Crime Reduction Centre is delivered with Yorkshire-based charity, People United Against Crime and South Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Humberside Police forces. BCRC is part financed by the European Union through the Yorkshire and Humber European Regional Development Fund Programme 2007-2013.
Visit www.bcrc-uk.org <http://www.bcrc-uk.org> for more details.
About People United Against Crime
People United Against Crime was founded in 1996 by South Yorkshire Police. It is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. The organisation, based in Sheffield, works mainly across the Yorkshire and Humber region. PUAC aims to reduce crime, support communities and strengthen local economies. Please visit www.people-united.org <http://www.people-united.org> for more details.
