Identity theft in the UK rises by a third

The number of people falling victim to identity theft in the UK has risen by almost a third, figures suggest.
The number of people falling victim to identity theft in the UK has risen by almost a third, figures suggest.The number of people falling victim to identity theft in the UK has risen by almost a third, figures suggest.
The number of people falling victim to identity theft in the UK has risen by almost a third, figures suggest.

Data from fraud prevention service Cifas shows ​​34,151 confirmed instances of identity fraud were recorded in the first quarter of ​2015​.

Identity fraud is when criminals abuse personal data to impersonate a victim or to create fictitious identities to obtain products and services.

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According to the figures for the three-month period, credit cards were involved in 14,103 confirmed cases, while bank accounts were involved in 9,349 cases.

Cifas said 80% of identity fraud in the first quarter was attempted online.

Simon Dukes, Cifas chief executive, said: “Our data is just the tip of the iceberg - more needs to be done to identify the true scale of fraud in the UK and educate individuals about the dangers and the steps that can be taken to protect themselves.”

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