Figures from UK Finance reveal that impersonation scams have almost doubled in the first six months of the year, with almost 15,000 cases reported between January and June 2020.
Figures from UK Finance reveal that impersonation scams have almost doubled in the first six months of the year, with almost 15,000 cases reported between January and June 2020.
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Identity fraud is at an all-time high in the UK, and the challenge will only grow over the next few years because fraudsters have been able to adapt. Anyone with an internet connection can access the dark web tools they need to pull off identity theft, leading to the rise of the cyber-enabled fraudster.
“The pandemic has shone the spotlight on the issue: criminals are capitalising on the crisis to commit fraud through tax refunds, credit card scams, phishing emails, and more. For example, geo-spoofing techniques enable criminals to use intermediate computers to hide their IP address and appear in a location that matches stolen credentials; elsewhere, hackers are implementing bots that use automated scripts to appear legitimate and access their victims’ accounts.
The crisis has provided fraudsters with countless new methods of attack, and the accompanying behavioural changes of consumers during the pandemic are only making it more difficult for static rules-based detection tools to cope. Anomaly detection is one of the key measures in identifying fraud, allowing organisations to understand significant deviations from normal behaviour. Existing fraud detection models will therefore take time to adapt to this new \’normal,\’ and the likelihood is we\’ll unfortunately see more fraud fall through the cracks.
To counter identity fraud, consumers and businesses must be more vigilant than ever before. Automated anti-fraud technology will be key to catching the criminals, helping protect the public.