One in seven of us has lost money to fraud or scams in the past year, according to a new survey.
Some 14% of those surveyed said they had fallen victim to a fraud which had cost them money in the last 12 months.
Half of respondents said they had received a fraud attempt within the last three months.
The prevalence of online fraud has increased support for tightening online security, with more people saying they are willing to go through additional checks to stay safe.
Just under half (49%) of those surveyed by financial insights company TransUnion said they didn’t mind being asked to reauthenticate after an initial login, for example, when changing a password or making a payment.
An overwhelming 78% of the 1,000 over-18s asked said they did not want to be able to access their accounts without their identity being verified first.
Chad Reimers, general manager of fraud and identity at TransUnion in the UK said: ‘Quick and seamless journeys have become the norm.
‘However, consumers are increasingly demanding trust as part of their interactions with digital channels.
‘There are increasing demands from consumers to ensure security and authentication – and this spans across sectors, from financial services, to gaming, to online dating.’
As well as reporting incidents to the police, people who believe they have fallen victim to fraud should tell their bank or payments provider as soon as they can.
This can help the provider to claw back the money and could also help to prevent further fraud attempts on the account.
Many banks have signed up to the 159 service – a memorable number that people can call if they have received contact that they suspect to be fraudulent.
People can also check their credit reports for any activity which may indicate fraud.
The UK lost around £23.9 billion to fraud and scams last year, according to the Nasdaq financial crime report – the equivalent to around 1% of Britain’s GDP.
This was the biggest loss in any country in the European region, followed France and Germany.
UK fraud reportedly accounts for more than 40% of crime but it receives ‘less than 1% of police resources,’ Janine Hirt, the CEO of Innovate Finance told Compliance Corylated.
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