Latest news with #APPscams
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK banks urged to beef up anti-fraud systems for international payments
UK banks and payment firms have been urged to strengthen their anti-fraud systems for international payments after a rise in scammers tricking people into sending money abroad. After years of horror stories about people losing huge sums through bank transfer scams, rules came into force last October requiring UK banks and other payment firms to refund those who have been manipulated into sending money to criminals. This week, industry data revealed that the number of cases of this type of crime had fallen to its lowest level for five years. Related: 'Remote purchase' fraud in UK surges as customers tricked into disclosing passcodes The frauds are known as authorised push payment (APP) scams. The number of cases fell by 20% last year to just under 186,000, said the banking body UK Finance, which issued the data. In 2023, there were more than 232,000 cases. The decrease is thought to be down in part to the new rules, plus other initiatives and greater awareness. But the figures came with some stings in the tail. While the number of cases fell substantially, the total amount lost to APP fraud decreased by just 2% to £450m. In other words, as UK Finance put it, 'fewer people are handing over bigger sums of money'. There was also a 'notable increase' in APP scams involving international payments, in which criminals trick people into sending money outside the UK. This is not covered by the new rules, which apply to money that is moved from one UK bank account to another. This week's data revealed that international payments accounted for 11% of APP scam losses in 2024 – almost double the 2023 figure. Rocio Concha, the director of policy and advocacy at Which?, said: 'Fraudsters are constantly evolving their tactics, so it is disheartening but unsurprising to see a rise in the number of cases in which scammers trick their victims into sending money abroad.' As these payments are not covered, the victims are very unlikely to get their money back. 'Banks and payment firms should enhance their anti-fraud controls for international payments, and the independent review of the mandatory reimbursement scheme in October should take note of these emerging trends,' said Concha. Most of the APP frauds reported last year (71%) were purchase scams, in which the victim hands over money for goods or services – perhaps a car, a mobile phone or gig tickets – that either do not exist or never arrive. When it comes to the total amount of money lost, investment scams dominate. Typically, the criminal convinces victims to move their money to a fictitious fund or pay for a fake investment. Cryptocurrencies often feature heavily. More than £144m was stolen via this type of APP fraud in 2024 – up 34% on 2023, despite a sizeable fall in the number of cases. UK Finance is itself not immune to being targeted by scammers. This week there was a prominent warning on its website saying: 'We are aware of a potential scam involving people being offered loans for an upfront fee by an individual posing as a representative of UK Finance.' The organisation doesn't offer any financial products, 'and anyone claiming to provide such products on our behalf is fraudulent,' it said. Meanwhile, the payments firm Visa this week revealed four fraud tactics that it said had been gaining ground across the UK and Europe in recent months. They are: Fraudsters offer high-value goods – such as exercise machines – at low prices. Shoppers are tricked into handing over the one-time passcode banks send customers to authorise transactions. These are then used by criminals to carry out fraud. Fake apps impersonating trusted organisations are stealing personal and financial data. Scammers get hold of people's card details via phishing and then link these to criminal-controlled digital wallets. They then use software that allows them to make contactless payments using these details remotely from anywhere in the world. Generative artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to create convincing fake IDs and open fraudulent accounts. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
The Guardian
5 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
UK banks urged to beef up anti-fraud systems for international payments
UK banks and payment firms have been urged to strengthen their anti-fraud systems for international payments after a rise in scammers tricking people into sending money abroad. After years of horror stories about people losing huge sums through bank transfer scams, rules came into force last October requiring UK banks and other payment firms to refund those who have been manipulated into sending money to criminals. This week, industry data revealed that the number of cases of this type of crime had fallen to its lowest level for five years. The frauds are known as authorised push payment (APP) scams. The number of cases fell by 20% last year to just under 186,000, said the banking body UK Finance, which issued the data. In 2023, there were more than 232,000 cases. The decrease is thought to be down in part to the new rules, plus other initiatives and greater awareness. But the figures came with some stings in the tail. While the number of cases fell substantially, the total amount lost to APP fraud decreased by just 2% to £450m. In other words, as UK Finance put it, 'fewer people are handing over bigger sums of money'. There was also a 'notable increase' in APP scams involving international payments, in which criminals trick people into sending money outside the UK. This is not covered by the new rules, which apply to money that is moved from one UK bank account to another. This week's data revealed that international payments accounted for 11% of APP scam losses in 2024 – almost double the 2023 figure. Rocio Concha, the director of policy and advocacy at Which?, said: 'Fraudsters are constantly evolving their tactics, so it is disheartening but unsurprising to see a rise in the number of cases in which scammers trick their victims into sending money abroad.' As these payments are not covered, the victims are very unlikely to get their money back. 'Banks and payment firms should enhance their anti-fraud controls for international payments, and the independent review of the mandatory reimbursement scheme in October should take note of these emerging trends,' said Concha. Most of the APP frauds reported last year (71%) were purchase scams, in which the victim hands over money for goods or services – perhaps a car, a mobile phone or gig tickets – that either do not exist or never arrive. When it comes to the total amount of money lost, investment scams dominate. Typically, the criminal convinces victims to move their money to a fictitious fund or pay for a fake investment. Cryptocurrencies often feature heavily. More than £144m was stolen via this type of APP fraud in 2024 – up 34% on 2023, despite a sizeable fall in the number of cases. UK Finance is itself not immune to being targeted by scammers. This week there was a prominent warning on its website saying: 'We are aware of a potential scam involving people being offered loans for an upfront fee by an individual posing as a representative of UK Finance.' The organisation doesn't offer any financial products, 'and anyone claiming to provide such products on our behalf is fraudulent,' it said. Meanwhile, the payments firm Visa this week revealed four fraud tactics that it said had been gaining ground across the UK and Europe in recent months. They are: Fraudsters offer high-value goods – such as exercise machines – at low prices. Shoppers are tricked into handing over the one-time passcode banks send customers to authorise transactions. These are then used by criminals to carry out fraud. Fake apps impersonating trusted organisations are stealing personal and financial data. Scammers get hold of people's card details via phishing and then link these to criminal-controlled digital wallets. They then use software that allows them to make contactless payments using these details remotely from anywhere in the world. Generative artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to create convincing fake IDs and open fraudulent accounts.
The Independent
15-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
‘High proportion' of APP scam victims getting their money back under new rules
A 'high proportion' of scam victims are getting their money back since new mandatory fraud reimbursement rules were launched last October, according to the regulator overseeing the policy. The rules, overseen by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), require banks to give people their money back when they have been tricked into transferring it to criminals. An authorised push payment (APP) reimbursement limit of £85,000 has been applied under the rules, although banks can choose to go further than this and repay higher amounts. Posting a 'snapshot' of what the regulator has seen so far, its managing director David Geale said on the PSR's website: 'We are pleased with what we've seen in the data and heard from stakeholders in the first few months, which demonstrates that the policy has been successfully implemented – and more consumers have been protected. 'This is testament to the efforts of industry to deliver the best outcomes for victims of APP scams and work with us to resolve any issues.' Under the new code, reimbursement costs are split between the sending and receiving banks – giving the receiving firm an added incentive to stop the scam happening in the first place. Mr Geale said: 'A high proportion of APP scam victims are being reimbursed consistently across a larger number of PSPs (payment service providers). 'And while it is too early to draw firm conclusions based on the period covered by this data, we have not seen evidence of spikes in claim volumes that some had feared would occur under the policy. 'Additionally, now that both parties in the payment journey (the sending PSP and the receiving PSP) share the cost of reimbursing victims, there is a much stronger incentive for all PSPs to prevent APP scams from occurring in the first place. 'We are pleased to see PSPs starting to collaborate more in the effort to fight this fraud.' Looking at compliance data reported by payment service providers, the regulator said that in the first three months of the initiative, 86% of money lost to APP scams was returned to victims, totalling around £27 million. The regulator said it is not possible to make direct comparisons with data from before its policy due to methodology changes, however 'we note that reimbursement for consumers in 2023 was 68% (by value), as per UK Finance's annual fraud report 2024 data'. Before the mandatory rules came into force, many banks had signed up to a voluntary reimbursement agreement. However, consumer campaigners raised concerns about banks not applying this consistently. The PSR said that before the policy went live, some organisations were concerned that there would be a sharp rise in the number of APP scam claims. But, on its website, it said: 'We have seen no evidence of any increase to date.' However, claim volumes 'have steadily increased each month and we expect this to continue in the short to medium term as victims become more aware of the policy,' according to the PSR. Firms can opt to apply an excess of up to £100 when reimbursing customers, but this cannot be applied to vulnerable customers. Some firms have waived the excess. Some APP fraud victims may also be refused reimbursement if they are deemed to have been 'grossly negligent'. The PSR's website said: 'Just 2% of total claims were rejected because the consumer standard of caution has not been met. We also heard from industry stakeholders that they did not see a significant shift in customer behaviour as a result of the policy. 'However, we are seeing differences in how frequently firms are applying the exemptions. This is backed up in the data we are seeing: only 23% of firms that received a claim in the period used this exception as a reason for rejecting reimbursement. 'We're working with firms and other stakeholders, including the Financial Ombudsman Service, and will keep under review whether more clarity is needed on when this exception should be applied.' Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said: 'Which? campaigned for years to make reimbursement mandatory, so it's encouraging to see that the new rules appear to be having a positive impact, with more APP scam victims getting their money back and a more consistent approach from banks and payment providers.'
