Victims of ID fraud losing £1,190 – and it’s on the rise

THE number of people falling victim to identity fraud is rising, with employers and members of the public not doing enough to protect themselves, experts have warned.

A total of 80,000 cases were reported across the UK last year, with victims losing £1,190 on average.

The Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC) said a quarter of people surveyed for National Identity Fraud Week admitted they do not shred bills and statements before putting them in the bin.

And 96 per cent said they did not believe organisations protected their information, while only 52 per cent of companies had a policy designed to protect identities.

Types of identity fraud range from phishing e-mails for personal details, bin raiding and bogus callers, to picking up papers left on desks, individuals pretending to be acquaintances as to gain information, and telephone callers pretending to be people’s banks.

Credit and debit card fraud following identity theft fell slightly in Scotland, from £157,000 in January to June last year, to £150,000 in the same months this year.

However, that four per cent decrease was a lot less than the 23 per cent fall across the UK.

And the SBCC, which does not hold Scottish identity fraud statistics, believes the wider problem is growing and people need to be better prepared.

Mandy Haeburn-Little, director of the Scottish Crime Business Centre (SBCC), said: “The important thing from my perspective is that people start doing more to protect their identity.

“Businesses, in particular, need to do everything they can to look after the details of their customers and employees.”

She added: “We’re looking to save businesses money and protect their individuals. Identity is a very valuable asset and should be treated as such.”

Students are particularly vulnerable to identity theft when they move to university, as they suddenly have much more personal identification to guard, she warned.

Ms Haeburn-Little said: “Certainly among younger people there should be higher awareness of how easy it is to pick information up.”

People are increasingly worried about identity fraud, with a study last year revealing 17 per cent expect to fall victim.

David Sinclair, of Victim Support Scotland, said: “Unfortunately identity theft has been portrayed as a victimless crime – it’s far from it.

“If someone’s identity is stolen it does create a victim, particularly where that person loses money from the crime.

“It can damage someone’s reputation and it can clearly damage their credit rating.”

Assistant Chief Constable Angela Wilson, Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpos) lead on financial crime, said: “With more and more business transactions and social interactions conducted online, the threat of identify theft is ever more present.”