Overseas card fraud up 77%

Total card fraud leapt to £535 million last year after two years of decline. This was driven by a 77% increase in overseas fraud, caused by account details and card numbers being stolen in the UK. The cost of overseas fraud has risen from £117 million in 2006 to £207 million in 2007. Overseas fraud accounts for 39% of total UK account holder losses.

Also on the rise is counterfeit fraud, characterised by criminals stealing cards and cloning the magnetic stripes. Counterfeit fraud increased by 46% last year. ‘Card not present’ fraud, commonly carried out by fake mail-order and internet vendors, increased by 37% over the same period.

The chip and PIN system continues to thwart UK based criminal activity though, with losses on ‘face to face’ criminal activity down by two thirds. Fraud on lost and stolen cards is at its lowest ebb for ten years.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at APACS, the UK payments association, would like to see countries lacking in chip and PIN technology get up to speed:

‘As more countries follow our lead and upgrade to chip and PIN, the opportunities for criminals to use our stolen magnetic stripe details overseas will decrease.’

Chris Eagle, Commercial Manager at CreditChoices, has a few pointers for those shopping online:

‘When shopping online, from Amazon marketplace for instance, always buy from reputable vendors with 100% feedback. Avoid overseas vendors with questionable feedback offering low price goods. Trust your gut instinct, and if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Most credit cards offer online purchase protection, so check the small print first before you switch credit cards.’

Related Articles:

Banks up internet security

Online fraud outweighs real world equivalent

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