Nearly 2 million Brits say they fell victim to identity theft crimes in 2023

According to a FICO report, about 1.9 million British consumers (4.3%) acknowledged that their identity was stolen and misused to open financial accounts in 2023.

The analytic company’s most recent Fraud, Identity and Digital Banking Report has gauged the concerns and views of many UK residents on identity fraud.

The Brits seem less worried about fraud concerning the banking system directly (cash theft and shopping scams) than banking-related fraud from stolen credit cards and application misuse, including criminals using their identity in new account fraud.

“Fraud resulting from stolen cards and identity theft leading to application fraud were the most likely to feature in their top three most concerning fraud types,” FICO’s report reads. “Given the headlines about people losing large sums to scams, it’s notable that they are significantly less worried about being tricked into sending money to a fraudster.”

Although the number of victims of fraud has dropped sharply since FICO’s 2022 survey, an additional 5.4% of Brits think it’s probable their identity has been used in this way in 2023, and 9.9% think that it’s possible.

What’s the number one fraud concern in the UK?

Seventy-one percent of respondents say that having their identity misused to open an account was their top concern. Despite these fears, though, 42.2% of respondents say it is unlikely that they are a victim, and 22.5% are confident that their stolen identity has never been used in this way.

How can you prevent new account fraud?

Dealing with the aftermath of fraud can be very time-consuming and mentally and financially draining for victims.

We recommend these practices to protect your identity and finances:

• Secure online accounts with robust and unique passwords and use additional security layers such as 2FA and MFA. For easy password management, check out Bitdefender Password Manager here.
• Always shred documents or mask sensitive personal information you are about to throw away. This includes bank and credit card statements, tax return documents, insurance, and medical records.
• Monitor online accounts for any suspicious activity and immediately report unfamiliar charges.
• Dispose of any personal information from devices you are about to put up for sale or donate.
• Stay vigilant against social engineering schemes and scams. Never give out personal info or sensitive data via email, phone calls, texts, or social media messages.

Use Bitdefender Scamio, our AI-powered scam detector available 24/7 to check for potential scams in seconds and protect your money and identity every time you’re unsure if some unsolicited correspondence is a scam.

• Stay on top of data breaches with a dedicated identity protection service that finds unauthorized leaks of personal information online and monitors if your accounts are exposed to help you immediately take action and prevent account takeovers
• Install a security solution on your devices to safeguard your personal information from attacks
• Never connect to public networks to carry out payments, banking or other work. Use a VPN to strengthen your privacy and prevent snoops from intercepting your information.