Fraudsters have been sharpening their social engineering tactics and continued to exploit cost-of-living pressures, according to Cifas.

Criminals are finding new ways to target consumers using social media and deepfake technology, with cost-of-living pressures also having an impact, according to a fraud prevention body.

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/uk-news/2024/04/16/criminals-ramp-up-social-engineering-and-ai-tactics-to-steal-consumer-details/

Cases of bank fraud have been rising so it is important to be aware of how to spot fraud before you become a victim. Fraudsters are becoming well adept knowing how to target and scam people to gain access to accounts or to steal money from you. Don't be embarrassed and make sure you act as soon as you realise.

Contact your bank

If you think you are a victim of fraud your first step should be calling your bank as soon as you know to explain the situation.

https://www.finance-monthly.com/2024/04/what-to-do-if-you-are-a-victim-of-bank-fraud/

Experts have warned the public following a rise in scams fueled by identity theft.

The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB) has reported a 97 per cent increase in organised insurance fraud by stolen identities in the past year.

Identity theft has a catastrophic financial impact on victims and aids a broad spectrum of insurance scams, including perilous crash for cash operations and ghost broking.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/rising-identity-theft-sees-97-040000122.html/

Six years on from the UK government introducing Unexplained Wealth Orders as a new law enforcement tool to combat ‘dirty money’, Commercial Litigation and Fraud partner Pia Mithani spoke to City AM’s Ben Lucas about their relative lack of use by the UK’s authorities to date.

https://www.stewartslaw.com/news/why-are-uwos-so-unpopular/

The amount of fraud cases has been rising and with digital banking becoming the new norm there are many ways someone can get access to your account. It is important to stay aware of scams so you can protect your accounts.

The Guardian reported that fraud cases in the UK more than doubled in 2023 to £2.3bn.

https://www.finance-monthly.com/2024/04/how-to-prevent-and-spot-bank-fraud/

Britain's biggest benefit fraud gang has been convicted for a £50 million Universal Credit plot.

Five Bulgarians - Galina Nikolova, 38, Stoyan Stoyanov, 27, Tsvetka Todorova, 52, Gyunesh Ali, 33, and Patritsia Paneva, 26 - admitted to fraud and money laundering related offences at Wood Green Crown Court for their involvement in a multimillion-pound scam on the benefit system.

https://www.itv.com/news/2024-04-10/britains-biggest-benefit-fraud-gang-guilty-of-50m-universal-credit-plot

Fraud within the retail, leisure, and food and beverage industries can undermine customer and consumer confidence and, in more serious cases, negatively impact consumers’ health and wellbeing. Without appropriate mitigation measures, the impact of fraud incidents can result in both great financial cost and operational disruption to businesses.

https://www.marsh.com/uk/services/risk-consulting/insights/understanding-fraud-risks-in-retail-leisure-food-industries.html

More than £612 million was lost to investment fraud in the UK last year, according to City of London Police.

And people aged 55 or over were the most likely to be targeted by investment fraud, the new figures show.

The data from Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, revealed the soaring rate of investment fraud in the last year, with a reported £612,208,663 in losses.

The UK retail sector lost £11.3bn to fraudulent activity in 2023, according to global financial technology platform Adyen.

The research, in partnership with the Centre for Economics, Business and Research, found that 35% of UK businesses became a target of fraudulent activity, cyberattacks or data leaks over the past year – up 37% compared with 2022.

https://www.retail-week.com/tech/cyberattacks-and-fraud-cost-uk-retail-sector-11bn-in-2023/7045950.article

The UK must use new laws to ensure online platforms have a legal responsibility to protect users from an “avalanche” of scams, a coalition of groups has warned the Government.

The 17 consumer and business groups and authorities have urged the Government to include scams in its proposed Online Safety Bill – which could be announced in next week’s Queen’s Speech – to protect consumers from their “devastating financial and emotional harm”.

https://uk.movies.yahoo.com/government-urged-online-safety-bill-230100733.html/