Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The Government has announced that internet laws, as part of the draft Online Safety Bill, will include measures to tackle user-generated fraud. The proposed change will mean online companies will, for the first time, have to take responsibility for tackling fraudulent user-generated content, such as posts on social media, on their platforms. This includes romance…
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Cybercrime and online fraud have risen sharply over the past year, with criminals exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic. Research by BAE Systems showed that three quarters of financial services firms have experienced an increase in digital crime since the pandemic began in March 2020, including coronavirus-related fraud and phishing or ransomware attacks. The research indicates that…
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New research has revealed that 56% of businesses are operating without any form of cyber-security insurance. This is despite one in five companies reporting an attack in the last 12 months and the likelihood of a continued surge in cyber-attacks in the coming months, and beyond. The companies reporting a cyber-attack, over half said security…
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Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) fraud, where companies apply for multiple government-backed loans to exceed lending caps, could be far lower than anticipated and points to the success of the scheme and creditor checks, according to data from the latest Equifax Market Pulse series. Previous estimates of how much the BBLS could lose to fraud…
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New research from the Institute of Directors (IoD) has found that a third of businesses are more vulnerable to cybercrime than pre-pandemic. In a poll of just under 800 IoD members, one in three directors indicated that their organisation is now more vulnerable to cyber crime. The sharp rise in home working due to the pandemic has meant that businesses have become more exposed to cyber threats.…
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UK consumers lost a record £479 million last year to scammers according to new figures from UK Finance. The report showed that criminals turned to online and technology-enabled scams to exploit people’s fears about the Covid-19 pandemic. Impersonation scam cases, in which criminals impersonate trusted organisations to trick victims into handing over their money, almost…
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Two in five businesses (39 per cent) and a quarter of charities (26 per cent) report having cyber security breaches or attacks in the last 12 months, according to new figures from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2021 report also shows the cyber risk to organisations…
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Research commissioned by Vodafone has found that the equivalent of 1.3m small businesses would go bust if they were targeted by hackers, leading to calls for the Government to put more money into cyber defences. The report urged the Government to expand and to protect small and medium-sized businesses further by providing more support to…
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New figures show that lenders have prevented nearly £1.6 billion in fraudulent claims against the Government-backed bounce-back loan schemes. The British Business Bank, which administers the scheme for the Treasury, said that 43,958 attempted loans had been blocked because they were suspected to be fraudulent claims since the scheme was launched in May to help…
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The Government has announced a new Covid-19 business loan scheme as part of its budget announcement. The new scheme called the Recovery Loans Scheme replaces the Bounce Back Loan and Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, which have paid out nearly £73 billion to British businesses. The Recovery Loan Scheme will launch on 6th April 2021,…
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As the Government made vital funds available to support businesses through the deepest recession for 300 years, a lack of due diligence and robust ID verification left the door wide open to organised crime gangs to exploit the opportunity according to anti-money laundering (AML) solution provider, SmartSearch The company has called on lenders, brokers and…
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Fraud prevention service, Cifas is urging retailers to better protect their customer’s information as designers and fashion chains look to attract new customers during London Fashion Week. The move comes as the latest data from the National Fraud Database reveals that facility takeover fraud in the retail sector rose by an enormous 195% in 2020.…
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High street banks could be forced to reimburse all scam victims under rules proposed by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR). The new regulations would also see banks forced to publish figures showing how often they pay back blameless fraud victims. The PSR has launched two calls for views exploring greater protections for everyone using payment…
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