Fraudsters stole £2,300 a minute from victims in 2022
Scammers stole £2,300 from UK consumers every minute last year, according to new figures from UK Finance.
Almost three million cases of fraud were reported in 2022, with a £1.2 billion lost to scammers - down 8% on 2021's figure.
Here, Which? explains the different types of fraud and how to protect yourself against them.
What is unauthorised fraud?
UK Finance splits its data between 'unauthorised' and 'authorised' fraud.
Unauthorised fraud involves a scammer carrying out transactions without your authorisation.
This can include instances where your card details are stolen and used by criminals to buy items or if a scammer opens or takes over a card account in your name.
In 2022, £727 million was lost to unauthorised fraud across payment cards, cheques and remote banking.
| Type of fraud | Total number of cases in 2022 | Total losses in 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Payment cards | 2.73m | £556m |
| Remote banking | 47,473 | £163m |
| Cheque | 966 | £8m |
(Source: UK Finance)
Victims of this type of fraud are legally protected against losses. An industry analysis shows customers are refunded in 98% of confirmed cases.
- Find out more: how to get your money back after a scam
What is authorised fraud?
Also known as authorised push payment (APP) fraud, this is when you are tricked into authorising a payment to an account controlled by a criminal.
There were 207,272 cases of APP fraud in 2022 with losses of £485m - the majority on personal accounts.
Only 59% of losses (£286m) were reimbursed to victims.
Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy, said: 'These figures show fraud rates in the UK remain frighteningly high and that victims are facing the double blow of being targeted by scammers and then all too often refused reimbursement by their banks.
'If the government is serious about its fraud strategy, the Online Safety Bill must provide meaningful protections against the deluge of online advertising fraud we all face on some of the world’s most popular social media sites and search engines - and it needs to be passed into law without delay.
'The government must also press ahead with plans to make all banks and payment providers reimburse scam victims in all but exceptional cases.'
Types of authorised fraud
The chart below shows the different types of authorised fraud, including the number of cases reported in 2022 and the total amount lost.
Investment scams
Almost £114m was lost to investment scams in 2022.
These often begin with ads on social media for bogus investment products, which promise high returns to encourage people to part with their cash.
- Find out more: 'I lost £19,000 to a digital art investment scam'
Impersonation scams
These scams involve scammers posing as your bank, solicitor, the NHS or an official body such as HMRC.
In some cases, fraudsters use number spoofing - this involves using technology so it appears as though a genuine person or company is calling you.
There were 16,948 cases of impersonation fraud where the scammer pretended to be from the victim's bank or the police, with losses totalling £109m.
There were more than 28,000 cases of other impersonation fraud totalling more than £67m.
- Find out more: scammers are imitating HMRC in fake tax refund emails
Purchase scams
This is when the victim pays in advance for goods and services that are never received. These scams usually involve online platforms, such as an auction website or social media site, where a scammer can advertise the sale of a popular product at a low price.
Purchase scams were the most common type of APP fraud in 2022 with 117,170 cases, up 17% from 2021. Losses in 2022 totalled £67m.
- Find out more:how to spot an online shopping scam
Invoice scams
Invoice scams involve criminals sending fake invoices to steal money from individuals and businesses - often independent traders.
There were 3,334 cases in 2022 with losses totalling £49m.
- Find out more: fraudsters impersonate Dorset Council with invoicing scam
Advance fee fraud
Fraudsters encourage victims to make upfront or advance payments for goods, services and or financial gains that do not materialise.
Advance fee fraud can take several forms, including job interview scams where you’re told you need to pay a fee to cover a background check or training course, or if you pay to enter a competition on social media which doesn’t exist.
Instances of this type of scam increased by 33% in 2022 with 27,239 cases with losses totalling £32m.
- Find out more: ‘I spent £3,000 on a non-existent car from a fake dealership: how can I get my money back?’
Romance scams
Fraudsters target people looking for love, often via online dating, befriending them before asking them for money.
There was a 12% rise in romance scams in 2022, with £31m lost.
- Find out more:the six signs you're dating a scammer
CEO fraud
The criminal poses as a senior person in the business in order to persuade staff to make an urgent payment. The request is often made via email, sometimes when the senior person is out of the office.
This was the least common type of fraud in 2022 with 432 cases, however losses totalled £13m.
Eight in 10 APP scams start online
APP fraud losses are driven by the abuse of online platforms - with eight in 10 originating online.
Around three quarters of online fraud starts on social media. This includes romance scams that take place via online dating platforms, and purchase scams which are promoted through social media and auction websites.
One in five fraud cases originate via telecommunications, but these are usually higher-value scams such as impersonation fraud.
UK Finance is calling for far greater cross-sector action to tackle the problem at source.
David Postings, chief executive of UK Finance, added: ‘Our data also makes clear just how much fraud emanates from online platforms and through telecommunications.
‘The government’s new fraud strategy rightly says we need to focus on stopping it at source and that these other sectors need to do far more to tackle the problem they are facilitating.’
What fraud protection do you have?
After Which? campaigned to Stamp Out Scams, most banks signed up to a voluntary code in 2019 which means they must take steps to protect customers from fraud and reimburse those who aren't to blame for falling victim to a scam.
According to the code, banks are required to:
- Educate customers about APP scams - including what to watch out for and how to protect themselves against fraudsters.
- Identify high-risk payments and vulnerable customers.
- Provide effective warnings when an APP scam risk is identified, including giving customers warning messages when they make payments or add new payees.
- Talk to customers about payments, and in some cases delay or stop payments when scam concerns arise.
- Act quickly when scams are reported.
- Take steps to stop fraudsters being able to open fake bank accounts.
The code applies to transfers made between UK accounts, but doesn't cover transfers made to overseas accounts.
The Financial Services and Markets Bill currently making its way through Parliament will require the Payments System Regulator (PSR) to establish a system for mandatory reimbursement of APP fraud.
Last week, the government released its new fraud strategy, which includes allowing banks to delay payments from being processed for longer, and a crackdown on cold calls on financial products.
Measures in the Online Safety Bill will also help to protect people from scam online ads, expected to become law later this year.
- Find out more: sign up for the Which? scam alert emails to keep one step ahead of the fraudsters.
