Chip and pin revolution boosts online fraud
July 30, 2007 by admin
Filed under News, News-Credit-Cards
One surprising outcome of the chip and pin revolution is that online fraud has risen, the trade association Apacs said today.
The massive increase in UK consumers shopping online has proved fertile ground for thieves, as the rise of chip and pin has left them looking for “other areas to exploit”.
The association has also found that one in eight have failed to log out while shopping – leaving their financial details accessible by others. One in four do not perform background checks on the websites where they conduct their transactions, leaving questions of security unanswered.
Apacs spokesperson Mark Bowerman said: “Certainly as you close down one avenue for the fraudsters, we know that they’re not going to pack up shop and get legitimate jobs, they’re going to look for other areas to exploit.
“Certainly the fact that this type of fraud has gone up would indicate that they’re doing that.”
Apacs figures from March this year show that online banking fraud cost £33.5 million in 2006, up from £23.2 million the previous year. Set against this was an overall decline in fraud from £439.4 million to £428 million.
