Leeds,
21
July
2022
|
18:52
Europe/Amsterdam

Latest ONS Figures Point to Rising Digital Fraud

Josh Gunnell, director of fraud & ID at TransUnion in the UK, comments on the recent quarterly fraud statistics:

“The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics confirm that fraud levels remain persistently high. The data shows a 25% increase compared with the year ending March 2020, at 4.5 million fraud offences. Due to the post-pandemic evolution of consumer behaviour creating new means and avenues for scams to be performed – which fraudsters are actively exploiting – previous upwards trends in consumer and retail fraud have continued to climb in this quarter.

“Particularly concerning are the rising levels of phishing. The ONS data shows that 50% of respondents reported receiving an email, text, or social media message that may have been phishing in the last month. As scams remain prevalent, consumers must be vigilant now more than ever when conducting transactions online.

“Rising levels of fraud come despite ongoing improvements to laws and regulations to help prevent people falling victim. To assure consumer protection, financial services companies must take the utmost precautions to minimise the risks of cybercrime as more consumers continue to conduct their banking digitally.”