Cifas’ annual Fraud Behaviours Survey – research into public attitudes to committing fraud – is a useful bellwether into society’s attitudes to lying for financial gain.

Year-on-year our fraud behaviours work has demonstrated a growing normalisation of fraud by the UK public and the findings in the latest survey are no exception. Nearly half (48%) of survey respondents felt that it was ‘reasonable’ to commit first party fraud – when an individual supplies false information or misrepresents their income to receive services or goods they are not entitled to – and 1 in 10 admitted to committing some form of first party fraud in the past 12 months.

Whether making false representations on mortgage applications, claiming Single Person Discount on Council Tax, or claiming refunds for goods actually received it is clear that this behaviour is increasingly being tolerated by society, with those aged between 25–34-years-old most likely to commit first party fraud, according to our research.

Attitudes to first-party fraud appear to go hand in hand with the growth of other dishonest behaviours across society, including shoplifting. Although these crimes are often seen as ‘victimless’ and ‘fair game’, they are in fact a drain on our national financial wellbeing, resulting in higher costs to businesses which are then passed on to consumers through higher prices. Fraud against the Public Sector also directly impacts communities who rely on increasingly scarce resources.

https://www.finextra.com/blogposting/28418/challenging-fraud-behaviours--a-matter-of-national-prosperity