In the first year of Action Fraud, more than 150,000 people contacted the counter-fraud body for advice or to report frauds totalling £78m. The average fraud loss reported was £500.
The average number of daily visitors to the website has risen by 319% in the last six months.
Marking the first anniversary of the service, the National Fraud Authority continues to urge every victim of fraud to report their loss to Action Fraud.
The five types of fraud most commonly reported to the service in the first year were:
Online shopping and auction fraud
Advance fee frauds such as employment or psychic scams
Application frauds such as fraudsters taking out loans or mobile phone contracts in your name
Non-investment fraud such as miracle health cures
Online dating frauds
The frauds reported which have the highest value loss were:
Investment / share sale frauds
Inheritance frauds
The amount lost by victims of these two frauds accounted for 47pc (near half) of the total fraud loss reported to Action Fraud.
All the crime reports gathered by Action Fraud feed directly into the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) run by the City of London Police. This allows them to take information from across the country and analyse for trends before putting intelligence profiles together to go to the relevant investigatory body. However there is no commitment to investigate any case reported.
To date, the NFIB has sent out 1029 crime reports from Action Fraud to police forces across the country. The majority of frauds reported to Action Fraud came from victims in London and the South-East. This was followed closely by the East of England, the North West and the West Midlands.
Dr Bernard Herdan, NFA Chief Executive, said: “We know that every year, at least £3.5billion is lost by individuals like you and me to frauds. However, the actual figure is probably much higher as many victims of fraud never report it – Too often people feel embarrassed about becoming a victim and stay silent. But this only helps the fraudsters. Fraud is a serious crime, often committed by organised gangs who use the money to fund other crimes such as drug smuggling and people trafficking. By protecting ourselves and reporting if we become a victim, we can all help stop the fraudsters.”
Detective Superintendent Tony Crampton, NFIB Director: "It’s never been more important to provide a robust response to fraud. As these criminals become increasingly organised and innovative, we need to constantly keep working to stay one step ahead of them. By providing crime reports which form a central part of NFIB intelligence, Action Fraud has assisted in the fight. This information has directly contributed to police arrests and private and public fraud alerts that are helping to prevent people from becoming victims."
Action Fraud has provided their top ten tips to protect against fraud:
if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is
if you didn’t enter a lottery…you won’t have won it
always check the real company’s details against the ones you have been given, and ring them direct if you are in doubt
remember that your bank will never ask you to confirm your full password
make sure you have up to date virus protection on your computer
don’t put too much personal information on social networking sites – and make sure you use the privacy settings
when buying goods online, make sure the padlock appears on the payment page and the address changes to https
ask questions – If someone is legitimate they won’t pressurise you or be elusive
be very wary about giving your personal information to strangers or providing money up front
don’t stay silent. If you’ve been targeted by a fraudster and lost money, contact Action Fraud.
Notes to Editors
Action Fraud is run by the National Fraud Authority (Part of the Attorney General’s Office) and takes a full crime report from victims of fraud. It also provides individuals and small businesses with advice about how to protect themselves becoming victims of fraud. Action Fraud started in October 2009 in the West Midlands and by July 2010 was rolled out across the UK. This gradual rollout enabled the service to be refined based on the needs of victims and the vulnerable seeking advice. In March 2010 a new web reporting tool was added to the website to increase the capacity of Action Fraud. It means that victims can now securely report their crimes online and still receive a crime reference number. The National Fraud Authority established in 2008, is the Government’s strategic lead organisation on counter-fraud activity in the UK.
