Online fraud - new survey

By Ben Hurst on Jun 8, 09 12:15 PM

'BE vigilant' is the only suggestion put forward following a new survey which shows how many people have been targeted by online fraudsters.

To be fair the sample size of the survey - 1,563 - is small, the results which had 77 per cent saying they had received 'phishing' emails seems to ring true.

I blogged about my own experiences recently, when I discovered that there is no real capacity in police forces to look into online fraud.

It's understandable, given your average force has enough on its' plate dealing with ordinary street crime.

Not to mention the fact that many of the criminals concerned don't even operate from the UK, and trying to track them down would require a phenomenal level of resources and international co-operation.

The survey also found seven out of 10 people said they had received emails asking for money, while 67 per cent had been told they had won a lottery or competition that did not exist, according to life assistance company CPP.

Around 17 per cent of those questioned said they had also received emails from people claiming to be acquaintances or relatives in a bid to con them into handing over money or revealing personal information.

Michael Lynch, identity fraud expert at CPP, said: "Cyber criminals now operate in very sophisticated ways.

"Although we are seeing very high levels of phishing email attacks asking for passwords and account details, we are now seeing more 'malware' attacks such as key-logging, where fraudsters can read what you type on your computer to capture your passwords and other sensitive financial information without you even knowing.

"People need to be vigilant and make sure that they have the proper security in place such as up-to-date anti-virus software."

It's in your hands, basically. Never ever reply or click on links in unsolicited emails.