Urgent warning issued to people selling their identities online

Independent

a day ago

There is a 'worrying trend' of people selling their own identities, a fraud prevention service has said.
The selling of identities, often in the hope of financial reward, leaves people liable for loans or credit taken out in their name by criminals.
Fraud prevention service Cifas, whose members include banking, retail, insurance, and telecoms bodies, said that more than 118,000 cases where identity fraud was suspected were recorded between January and June 2025.
It said the ongoing threat is being exacerbated by AI (artificial intelligence)-enabled synthetic identities and fabricated profiles that can bypass security checks.
It highlighted concerns that people are sometimes selling their own identities, typically on the promise of attractive financial opportunities.
But by giving criminals access to legitimate credentials, Cifas is warning that people risk having debts built up by others in their name.
Releasing its latest Fraudscape report, Cifas said that criminals are using advanced AI to create fake identities, forge documents, and bypass verification systems with 'alarming accuracy'.
It said identity fraud risks have spread across various sectors, including false applications and identity theft in motor insurance; mobile account takeovers; and gambling-related identity fraud including criminals misusing the identities of people who have died.
There has also been an increase in cases involving employees committing fraud against employers, Cifas said, with organisations reporting that more employees were concealing their background information to secure roles.
Secret 'polygamous working' – where people hold multiple jobs or roles without their employer's knowledge or consent – as well as using fraudulent reference houses to cover employment gaps – are also a persistent threat to employers, Cifas said.
Its Fraudscape report showed that, in total, more than 217,000 fraud risk cases were recorded to the National Fraud Database (NFD) by Cifas members from January to June 2025.
Mike Haley, CEO of Cifas, said: 'Fraud is a national emergency – and AI has supercharged the threat, making it more sophisticated and harder to detect. No sector, business, or individual is immune.
'Tackling this fast-changing danger requires urgent, co-ordinated action through cross-sector collaboration and the sharing of data and intelligence. Only by working together can we stay ahead of the criminals and keep organisations and people safe from harm.'