Fraud

Financial firms, telecommunications and tech leaders have launched a collaborative programme in International Fraud Awareness Week to tackle financial crime across the UK.

UK Finance has reported that £571.7 million was stolen through payment fraud in the first half of 2024, a 1.5% decrease from the same period in 2023. While authorised push payment (APP) fraud losses decreased by 11%, unauthorised fraud losses increased by 5%.

New data from Santander UK has revealed a worrying increase in romance scams, with losses totalling over £3.8 million in the last six months – a 27% rise.

From 7 October 2024, victims of authorised push payment (APP) scams will be able to claim a maximum reimbursement of £85,000 for losses incurred through Faster Payments and CHAPS, the Bank of England's Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) has confirmed. This decision by the PSR board reduces t

The UK is losing billions of pounds a year in revenue due to tax evasion among small businesses, which can easily exploit weaknesses in government systems, according to a new National Audit Office (NAO) report on tax evasion in retail. As well as raising public funds, reducing tax evasion encourages

The UK's Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is proposing to lower the maximum amount banks must refund victims of authorised push payment (APP) fraud from £415,000 to £85,000. The regulator is currently consulting on this change, having reviewed data on high-value APP scams, which

Bank of Scotland-owner Lloyds Bank has warned of a rising scam which has costing victims an estimated £6.6 million so far, where rogue retailers are using fake websites to trick people into purchasing items that are never dispatched. Tens of thousands of credit and debit card customers ha

The jailed former office manager of an Edinburgh property firm who embarked on a luxury lifestyle after embezzling company funds has been ordered to pay back more than £211,000. Emma Hunt, 38, who was imprisoned for three years in August last year after a jury found her guilty of fraud and emb

Public sector fraud in Scotland has risen by almost 50% according to Audit Scotland. A data matching exercise, part of the UK-wide National Fraud Initiative (NFI), detected £21.5 million worth of fraud and payment errors across the Scottish public sector.

A manager who embezzled just over £40,000 from vulnerable residents at a social care charity has been imprisoned for 12 months. Violet Connor, 67, of Glenrothes, stole money from the bank accounts of Sense Scotland users over a three-year period.

A salesman who was found guilty of being part of a £3.3 million fraud against Edinburgh University has been jailed for seven years. Aasim Johar, 54, colluded with the university’s former assistant director of estates and buildings Geoff Turnbull to mastermind a bogus procurement scheme t

Companies House has implemented new and enhanced powers aimed at fortifying the integrity of its data and curbing the misuse of the companies register.

A former office manager of an Edinburgh property firm has been sentenced to three years' imprisonment after defrauding her employers and its clients of over £900,000. Emma Hunt, 37, spent thousands on parties, hospitality at sporting events, hotel stays, a five-star Caribbean holiday, cars, an

Advice Direct Scotland has revealed a significant rise in online investment scams this year, resulting in Scottish residents losing at least £120,000 to cyber criminals. The spike in fraudulent activity has largely been attributed to the misuse of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twit

In a revelation by the UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), it has emerged that a former tracing agent for Royal Bank of Scotland, resorted to unscrupulous methods to assist the bank in debt recovery.