British Banks Warn Of A Spike In Online Scams

Britain's largest bank has issued an urgent warning following a spike in a new fraud exploit targeted at those struggling with the cost of living. The scam sees fraudsters contact victims who have entered their details into a seemingly professional website after searching for a loan online.

Every year, thousands of individuals and businesses fall victim to exploits where they are tricked into sending money to an account controlled by a fraudster. There are also a significant number of accidentally misdirected payments that are not recovered.

And now a number of large British banks, including the largest, Lloyds, are saying that there was a large increase in fraud in 2022, mostly in the form of online exploits.

Lloyds, Barclays TSB and Meta Banking Groups Report Scam Increase

Lloyds Banking Group's has said banks are facing an "epidemic of scams" following a 90% surge in so-called "advance fee" frauds in which scammers pose as a legitimate firm and demand money upfront for a loan. Victims have lost an average of £231, the bank said.  The director of fraud prevention at Lloyds Banking Group, Liz Ziegler, says banks are dealing with an epidemic of fraud. She noted that taking into account the fact that 70% of fraud cases begin with interaction on the main technological platforms, the owners of these virtual activity spaces should be responsible for countering crime and correcting the situation of innocent victims.

  • Barclays say that 77% of scams are now happening on social media, online marketplaces and dating apps.
  • TSB said a large increase in cases of impersonation, investment and purchase fraud were the main drivers of this. It found impersonation scams on WhatsApp had tripled in a year, while fake listings on Facebook Marketplace had doubled.

The bank says there have been "huge fraud spikes" on platforms owned by Meta, such as WhatsApp and Facebook.

  • NatWest chief executive Alison Rose told a Treasury Select Committee that three million people in the UK were victims of fraud in 2022. "We have seen an 87% increase in fraud," she said, adding that NatWest estimated 60% of frauds originated on social media and technology platforms.

TSB also said 60% of purchase fraud cases of which it is aware - where a scammer sells an item they never intend to send to the buyer, happen on Facebook Marketplace, and two-thirds of impersonation fraud cases it sees are happening on WhatsApp. The bank says it issued 2,650 refunds covering these cases last year.

According to the most recent figures from UK Finance, which represents the banking and finance sector, 56% of the total amount lost to scams was returned to customers in the first half of 2022.

Many banks, including NatWest, Lloyds and Barclays, are signed up to the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code, which aims to reimburse people if they fall victim to an Authorised Push Payment scam "and have acted appropriately".

PSR:    UKFinace:      BBC:     BBC:    PaySpace Magazine:     Telegraph

You Might Also Read:

Bank of Ireland Fined €463,000 Over Data Breaches:

___________________________________________________________________________________________

If you like this website and use the comprehensive 6,500-plus service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription.

  • Individual £5 per month or £50 per year. Sign Up
  • Multi-User, Corporate & Library Accounts Available on Request

Cyber Security Intelligence: Captured Organised & Accessible


 

« The Dark Web Is A Big Cyber Security Threat
5G Renders Smart Cities More Vulnerable To Attacks »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Check Point

Directory of Suppliers

LockLizard

LockLizard

Locklizard provides PDF DRM software that protects PDF documents from unauthorized access and misuse. Share and sell documents securely - prevent document leakage, sharing and piracy.

Resecurity

Resecurity

Resecurity is a cybersecurity company that delivers a unified platform for endpoint protection, risk management, and cyber threat intelligence.

TÜV SÜD Academy UK

TÜV SÜD Academy UK

TÜV SÜD offers expert-led cybersecurity training to help organisations safeguard their operations and data.

Clayden Law

Clayden Law

Clayden Law advise global businesses that buy and sell technology products and services. We are experts in information technology, data privacy and cybersecurity law.

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO is the market leader in HPE Non-Stop Security, Risk Management and Compliance.

Civica

Civica

Civica provides cloud-based managed IT services, hosting and outsourcing.

British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA)

British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA)

BIBA is the UK’s leading general insurance intermediary organisation. Use the ‘Find Insurance‘ section of the BIBA website to find providers of cyber risk insurance in the UK.

ATSEC Information Security

ATSEC Information Security

ATSEC is an independent, privately-owned company that focuses on providing laboratory and consulting services for information security.

Phirelight Security Solutions

Phirelight Security Solutions

Phirelight empowers an enterprise to easily understand how their networks behave, while at the same time assessing and managing cyber threats in real time.

Digi International

Digi International

Digi is a leading global provider of mission-critical and business-critical machine-to-machine (M2M) and Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity products and services.

Greensafe IT

Greensafe IT

Greensafe offer various onsite and offsite data erasure services, aimed at increasing data security whilst reducing any risk of data loss during transit.

Worldline

Worldline

Worldline IIoT solutions allow industrial companies to start their digital transformation journey with industrial level cyber security standards (IEC 62443 ready).

DataTribe

DataTribe

DataTribe is a cyber startup foundry, leveraging deep experience and expertise to build and launch successful product companies.

Sayata Labs

Sayata Labs

Sayata delivers a streamlined solution for processing cyber policies. Increase profitability with an easy and intuitive platform.

Privakey

Privakey

Transaction Intent Verification. Privakey delivers a secure channel to streamline high risk transactions, enabling digital trust between services and their users.

Guernsey

Guernsey

Guernsey provides a wide range of engineering, architecture and consulting services to multiple markets, including cybersecurity consulting and CMMC certification.

Q5id

Q5id

At Q5id, we prove that your customers' digital identity and real-world identity are the same, our verification and authentication solution delivers a Proven and Secure digital identity for everyone.

Texaport

Texaport

Texaport's vision is to be the trusted partner of choice for organisations seeking comprehensive IT management and cutting-edge security solutions.

Fortress SRM

Fortress SRM

Fortress SRM protects companies from the financial, operational, and emotional trauma of cybercrime by improving the security performance of its people, processes, and technology.

Beazley Security

Beazley Security

Beazley Security is a global cyber security firm committed to helping clients develop true cyber resilience: the ability to withstand and recover from any cyberattack.

Vulnify

Vulnify

At Vulnify, we’re revolutionizing the way businesses identify and manage security vulnerabilities.