UK Government launches new online crime squad

Launching operations in April, the Online Crime Centre will bring together specialists from the government, police, intelligence agencies, banks, mobile networks and major tech firms to drive co-ordinated action against fraud.

The centre will be charged with identifying the accounts, websites and phone numbers that organised crime groups rely on, and shut them down at scale - blocking scam texts, freezing criminal accounts, removing scam social media accounts and disrupting operations at source.

As part of the strategy, victims will receive stronger support, through the establishment of clear national standards for how every victim is treated. A new fraud victims charter will set out response times, minimum standards of care and consistent advice on reimbursement and recovery.

A dedicated network of police ‘PROTECT’ officers - charged with helping those most vulnerable to fraud - will ramp up targeted support in fraud hotspots across the country. Using data from the new Report Fraud service, police will spearhead a campaign of targeted prevention - from doorstep advice to installing call-blocking devices in vulnerable homes and businesses - to ensure those at heightened risk are protected.

Fraudsters will also face swifter justice and tougher financial penalties under reforms being considered as part of the strategy to speed up court processes and strengthen the use of civil powers.

The strategy comes as 1 in 14 adults, and 1 in 4 businesses, have become a victim of fraud, costing the economy over £14 billion a year.

Liz Ziegler, fraud prevention director at Lloyds Banking Group, says: “Last year alone, our technology prevented £1 billion of attempted fraud from reaching our customers. But no single sector can tackle fraud in isolation. It’s essential that industry, government, law enforcement, technology and telecoms companies work together - and are incentivised to share intelligence quickly, act decisively and disrupt the criminal networks behind the UK’s most common crime.”

The coalition is backed by major telcos and social media agencies, inluding Meta and Google, who’s own platforms are often the originator of online scams.

Riccardo Tordera-Ricchi, VP polcy & government relations at The Payments Association, says it’s time to stop the “fraud profit” and mandate that Big Tech shares the economic responsibility.

“Collaboration is good, but accountability is better,” he says. “We continue to believe that economic incentives should be mandated, as the payments industry cannot shoulder the economic burden of reimbursement alone when fraud continues to originate on other players’ platforms.”

News of the new agency comes as Mastercard Europe reveals figures that estimate that global cybercrime will evolve into the third largest ‘economy’ by 2029, with annual costs estimated to reach $15.6 trillion by 2030. According to the data, $1 trillion is lost globally to scams each year, with 96% of victims never recovering funds.