£1.1bn of BBLS cash flagged as suspected fraud

Reuters has reported that Government data will show that around £1.1bn of small business loans made under Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) have been classified as suspected fraud. The Government’s current central estimate for bounce back loan fraud is for 7.5% of the total lent. In addition to the suspected fraud, banks have claimed £2.6bn…

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Retailer banned from running companies after false bounce back loan claim

A retailer from Walsall has been disqualified from running companies for 9 years after abusing a £45,000 bounce back loan she was not entitled to. Rebecca Simmons was a director of Tia-Bella, trading from premises in Wolverhampton. The company, a specialty balloon and gifts retailer, was incorporated in March 2019 but just over 2 years…

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Bounce Back Loan fraudster jailed for two years

A Director of Manchester pizza takeaway has been jailed for two years after he fraudulently claimed £20,000 Bounce Back Loan funds. Abdulrazag Zagroba appeared at Manchester Crown Court and was sentenced to 24 months before Recorder Hudson. The case was the first successful criminal prosecution of a bounce bank loan fraudster for the Insolvency Service,…

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Two-thirds of businesses impacted by fraud

According to a global survey by PwC, fraudsters have targeted two-thirds of British companies in the past two years, with cyberattacks the most common crime. In Britain, 64% of big corporations had been affected by fraud and other economic crimes over the period, 10% up on two years ago and significantly above the global average,…

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Seven in ten businesses concerned about cyber attacks

The Institute of Directors has found that seven in ten (72%) of business leaders view cyber risk as a significant concern for their organisation, with 58% believing that the risk of a cyber attack on their organisation has increased. In its poll of nearly 600 directors, the IoD also found that 54% believe that every…

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Government approach to Covid business support will cost taxpayer billions

Billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money will be ‘lost to fraud and error as a result of the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy’s (BEIS) approach to its Covid-19 business support schemes according to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Despite providing important support to businesses across the country, BEIS’ latest estimate is that £4.9…

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Cost of investigations and heightened fraud risk hit businesses hard

Risk specialist, Kroll has revealed the results of its latest Global Fraud and Risk Report, showing that organisations around the world are dealing with the rising costs associated with investigating allegations of serious misconduct. The report, based on a survey of over 1,330 senior decision-makers for risk strategy, including CEOs, general counsels, chief compliance officers…

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Cybersecurity unit tackled record number of online scams in 2021

A record number of scams were removed from the internet in 2021 thanks to the Active Cyber Defence programme. The National Cyber Security Centre (NSCS) has revealed that more than 2.7 million scam campaigns were stamped out in 2021, nearly four times more than in 2020. The rise reflects the expansion of NCSC services to…

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Reported cases of business fraud increase by 16%

Fraud prevention service, Cifas has released its annual Fraudscape report, detailing the latest data and intelligence recorded by Cifas members during 2021. The report reveals that a new case of fraudulent conduct was filed by organisations every 90 seconds on average, with over 360,000 cases recorded to the National Fraud Database – an increase of…

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Nearly a third of firms suffer cyber attacks hit every week

The government is encouraging organisations to be vigilant of cyber threats as new data reveals nearly a third of firms suffering cyber attacks hit every week. Businesses and charities are being urged to strengthen their cyber security practices with almost one in three businesses (31 per cent) and a quarter (26 per cent) of charities…

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Digital fraud checks could have reduced fraud on Bounce Back Loans

24th March 2022 Business Lending | #business fraud

Digital fraud checks could have significantly reduced the £11.8 billion pounds now estimated to have been lost by the government to fraudulent and erroneous applications for Covid-19 support, according to anti-money laundering specialist, SmartSearch. New figures from the House of Commons library show that fraud and errors involving coronavirus support schemes such as furlough and…

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Fraud cases heard in courts increased by 66% in 2021

24th February 2022 Commercial Credit Management | #fraud

The number of alleged fraud cases heard in UK courts in 2021 went up by 66 per cent compared to the same time in 2020 according to new analysis by KPMG. KPMG UK’s Fraud Barometer found that despite another lengthy Covid -19 lockdown at the start of 2021, UK courts appear to have got back…

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UK lost up to £16bn due to fraud in Covid loans schemes

24th February 2022 Business Lending | #loan fraud

The UK Government could lose as much as £16 billion to fraud and error across the Covid-19 emergency loan schemes, according to a report from the Public Accounts Committee described the losses as ‘unacceptable’ and said the Treasury should outline exactly what it intends to recover. The furlough scheme is estimated to have suffered the largest…

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