Use of stolen identities in fraud events rose by 80 per cent in the year to June 2016, with 57 per cent of credit application fraud now occurring online, according to Veda’s 2016 Cybercrime and Fraud Report.

Released last week, the report shows that the volume of reported fraudulent activities climbed by a third.

The data identified the emergence of a surprising upward trend in fraud occurrence in bank branches, which rose 13 per cent in 2016.

“Growth in fraud through the broker channel is also an ongoing concern,” the report said. “Broker channel fraud makes up 15 per cent of all credit application fraud and has grown a significant 25 per cent in H2 FY16.”

Veda’s Fraud Focus Group gathers representatives from Australia’s big banks, credit unions, card companies, international financial institutions, telecommunication companies, remittance companies, law enforcement officials and anti-fraud experts to discuss strategies to combat cybercrime and fraud.

Veda’s 2016 Cybercrime and Fraud Report extracts data from Veda’s Shared Fraud Database to offer an understanding of cybercrime and fraud in 2016 and beyond, and propose ways for businesses and consumers to keep one step ahead.

Imelda Newton, Veda general manager, fraud and identity solutions, said the latest insights from the Veda shared fraud database reveal that growth in fraud shows no signs of slowing in 2016.

“Reports of fraudulent online credit applications have gained steady momentum in the past year, making up 57 per cent of all fraudulent applications in the six months to June 2016,” Ms Newton said. “This is up from 50 per cent in the same period in 2015, and 45 per cent in 2014,” she said.

“This trend is likely to continue into the future, as individuals and businesses become more reliant on the internet for their banking, shopping and other financial interactions.”

Another continuing trend is the growth of identity takeover, according to Ms Newton – the fastest growing type of fraud – where a genuine identity is stolen from an individual and misused for financial gain.

“This type of fraud goes hand-in-hand with data breaches, which are often a result of online hacking and vicious malware,” she added.

Insights from this year’s data identified the emergence of a surprising upward trend in fraud occurence in bank branches.

“It is surprising, given the amount of cameras, witnesses and security controls, that perpetrators can inflict damage within these trusted environments,” Ms Newton said.

“This rise in branch fraud may be a result of banks and other financial institutions continuing to use manual methods when verifying identities. One of the downsides to these manual processes is the subjectivity of manual identity verifications. By using electronic verification the subjectivity is removed and a common standard set of rules can be applied.

“As online credit providers toughen up rules and technology for the verification of identity, the traditional branches need to adopt the same processes.”

 

The gang, which consists of three men and a woman, are using cloned and stolen cards to steal high-end goods.

 

A gang operating a sophisticated credit card fraud have swindled hundreds of thousands of euro from towns across Ireland in recent days. 

 

The gang, which consists of three men and a woman, are using cloned and stolen cards to steal high-end goods. 

 

The gang have hit a number of towns in recent days including Letterkenny in Co Donegal as well as Dublin city centre. 

 

Gardai in Letterkenny estimate that more than €20,000 in laptop computers, phones, jewellery and perfumes was stolen using bogus card in just one day recently. 

 

Another spate of robberies using cloned cards took place across Dublin, including Grafton Street, on Friday afternoon last.

 

A Garda source revealed how a jewellery store in Dublin had €5,000 worth of goods taken by the gang. 

 

It is understood the cloned cards belong to wealthy card owners whose banks would not ‘red flag’ larger purchases and allow transactions through. 

 

The cards being used in the latest spate of robberies are ones which would not normally be in circulation in Ireland. 

 

The gang are highly-mobile and use both public transport and private cars between shops. 

 

They base themselves between Belfast and Dublin and are aged in their 40s and 50s. 

 

Sgt Paul Wallace, Crime Prevention Officer in Co Donegal, said retail staff must take the time to go through the various security checks on credit cards. 

 

“It is not a coincidence that staff in shops who have gone through various security checks are the shops who have not suffered as much as others. 

 

“We are appealing to retail owners to sit down with their staff and to run through the security checks. 

 

“If they are unsure of checks, they should consult the safecard.ie website. 

 

“This gang and other gangs operating in this area are highly organized, confident and know exactly what they are. 

 

“And they are also targeting younger people who may only be in stores working for the Christmas period and not completely familiar or confident with the operation of their systems,” he said.

 

 

Gene Robertson, director of special investigations and analytics at Erie Insurance, battles online insurance fraud nearly every day. During his 20-plus years with ERIE and previous experience with the U.S. government, he’s pretty much seen it all.

 

“From my perspective, you used to see door-to-door snake oil salesmen,” he says. “Now they’re in your inbox.”

 

These scammers are highly sophisticated, and they know exactly how to lower your barriers. As a result, today’s victims are often highly educated, technologically savvy adults. 

 

“Often, the scammer and the soon-to-be victim trade emails to lend an air of legitimacy to the transaction,” Robertson says. “But the key to the scam is the wiring of money and the transaction code generated during the wiring transaction. Once you wire the money, the transaction code is the key to the kingdom.” Scammers often get victims to do this after they present counterfeit ERIE checks that, courtesy of high-quality scanners and check stock, appear surprisingly legitimate.

 

All of this translates into bad news for honest Policyholders. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), insurance fraud is the second most costly white-collar crime in America. What’s more, insurance industry studies reveal that 10 percent or more of property/casualty insurance claims are fraudulent, and that makes everyone’s premiums more expensive.

 

Here are three common insurance scams out there—unfortunately, there are even more being used and thought up every day.

 

 

What happens: A “buyer” scanning a classified ads website decides to purchase something that you’re selling. He says that he owned an item just like yours, but it was lost or stolen. Because of that, the scammer says his insurer—in this case, ERIE—will overnight a check to you in order to cover his claim. 

 

The catch: The scammer says you must wire money to cover the shipping costs, but you’ll be reimbursed by “ERIE.” You agree and end up receiving an official looking (but fake) ERIE check to cover the shipping and the item. You then wire the “shipping” money straight into the scammer’s pocket. Later, when you try to deposit the “ERIE” check, you discover it’s fraudulent.

 

 

What happens: Professional fraudsters harvest your email address through a spam mailing. They’ll then review a list of all the people you email and target the ones you sometimes contact. Figuring you care about them but don't know their whereabouts in the same way you know those of family members and close friends, they'll pretend to be stranded overseas and in need of money.

 

The catch: You need to wire money—and the sooner, the better. 

 

 

What happens: Scammers use emails to foster the illusion of trust while communicating with a seller listing a car online. 

 

The catch: The buyer insists on presenting a check at the first in-person meeting instead of cashing it at a legitimate financial institution.

 

The result of all these scams: The victim loses the money he or she sent and the value of the item. However, certain types of these losses may be covered under ERIE’s Identity Recovery Coverage. See your ERIE Insurance Agent for details.

 

 

Avoid falling into any of these traps by keeping these tips in mind:

 

·         Stay away from anyone willing to greatly overpay for an item. They’ll sometimes ask you to return the overpayment—your check will clear while the one they gave you will bounce.

 

If you suspect a case of insurance fraud, don't hesitate to call ERIE’s toll-free Fraud Hotline at (800) 368-6696 or send an email to fraud.finders@erieinsurance.com. All calls and emails are confidential.

 

You can also call the NICB toll-free hotline at (800) 835-6422 or your state’s bureau of consumer protection. Finally, you can forward suspicious emails to the Federal Trade Commission at spam@uce.gov—if they find that something‘s up, they’ll generate a case against the senders.

 

 

Did you know that victims of identity fraud spend an average of 60 hours and hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars to undo the damage?

 

Luckily, Identity Recovery Coverage from ERIE can spare you the time, expense and aggravation this sort of situation entails. Available for a low annual fee, Identity Recovery Coverage not only provides a trained case manager to assist you with the entire recovery process—it also reimburses you up to $5,000 in lost wages, certain legal fees and more.

 

Pollution could also cause harm to our health and each of us is vulnerable to its effects. But, you can still minimize the effects of exhaust fumes with a proper exhaust control.

 

A good exhaust control has good effects that are helpful to the environment as well as to the car owners. This particular approach can first, reduce noise levels. Proper design and installation of an exhaust pipe system can minimize noise pollution where you can ask the help of a professional car service provider like Tyre&Auto Southbourne Groupto do this specific task for you. A broken exhaust pipe could also lead to increased noise levels, so in case you're facing such concern, contact a car service provider immediately.

 

A proper exhaust control also means that direct exhaust is away from the passengers since exhausts were designed at the tail end of a car, or raised high up to support the escape of exhaust fumes into the atmosphere. To assure a more stress-free ride, let a car service provider such as Tyre&Auto Southbourne Groupcheck if there’s any clogging or leaks in your car.

 

A good exhaust control also results in better engine performance. In case you notice a reduced power and performance in your car, then it could be due to a defective exhaust pipe since it decreases the engine's ability to maximize its burning capability. Inefficient disposal of the waste gases from the combustion process could also lead to a large percentage of lost in an engine's power.

 

A proper exhaust control can lastly, make fuel consumption more effective since increasing the effectiveness of fuel consumption depends on proper burning. Furthermore, a decreased car mileage is due to a defective exhaust system; and having a faulty exhaust pipe system could pollute the environment as well as burn your money.

 

Tyre&Auto Southbourne Groupstrives to always give excellent car service to their customers to help them take care of their cars as well as the environment. The company believes in the importance of being responsible for controlling the quantity and quality of exhaust fumes, and seeing significant value in the good effects of a proper exhaust control.

Expatriate for a foreign company

 

As a foreigner living in Japan, dealing with bureaucracies can be daunting and that applies especially to filing taxes. I needed an accountant to do my tax return who was affordable, competent, and who could speak English. Kaori Fuchi and her staff exceeded all of my expectations. From start to finish, and even after submitting my return, she promptly replied to my emails with clear, concise advice and support. I was even provided with step by step instructions on how and where to file my tax return all in English.

 

Filing taxes has never been easier. I'm already planning to use Kaori Fuchi Tax and Consulting for my 2014 tax needs because there's no other competition as they are the best!

 

Expatriate for a major US apparel manufacturer

 

I requested help on my Japanese income tax return. I came to Japan as an expatriate of a foreign company, so I knew nothing about Japanese tax systems.

 

Kaori not only speaks English, but understands what is important to foreigners. She has been a great help to me, as she does everything professionally and promptly. I intend to ask Kaori to take care of my tax matters for the duration of my stay in Japan. Thank you Kaori and I really appreciate it.

 

Managing an English Coaching & Consulting company in Japan

 

The Socratic Review improves your English communication skill, advances the client’s ability powerfully, effectively and rapidly, and is the only Coaching & Consulting company in Japan that guarantees the goal achievement in English communication skill improvement. 

 

Kaori was recommended to us by one of her clients. Kaori always provides the necessary information promptly. She responds to mails very quickly as well. She talks to the tax office for us to lead the discussions to the right direction. I think that for foreigners doing business in Japan, a quick response is very important. Japanese business practice is at a somewhat different pace to that of Western countries, but her prompt response is always of great help.

 

Yoga instructor

 

I work as yoga instructor, body work therapist, and physical therapist. As an American needing to do tax return in Japan, I needed somebody who can advice me about this. Kaori was really kind! Dealing with tax matters in a foreign country in foreign language has been like walking in a dark jungle. It caused me a great stress and fear, but everything was made clear and I was really relieved. It was really reassuring to have somebody explain in English.

 

Tax Control, Investment Control and Asset Control on Properties

 

We chose Kaori Fuchi Tax and Consulting because we felt they offer high quality service to their clients. We also ask the office to act as our administrator of tax payment. Working with Kaori has been a good learning experience for us. She speaks fluent English and therefore can communicate with us properly.

 

Owner of oversea real estates

 

I met Ms. Fuchi in July 2011. I own several assets (rental properties) in USA as I lived in USA for a long time, so when I immigrated to Japan I needed advice regarding their treatment in tax return. I got an impression that she grasps client’s need very quickly and provides precise advice. I consulted Ms. Fuchi as a tax accountant with knowledge on international tax matters, and she appeared to have had experiences in variety of cases and has answered to the contents of my consultation very accurately. I assume there had been a thorough preparation behind it. She also followed up after the meeting, and I am really grateful for her sincere handling of my case.

 

In the UK there has recently been a scam whereby a fraudster claiming to be from the phone company calls up and persuades a customer to type in their bank security codes. There then follows the predictable argument about who is responsible for the subsequent losses – the bank or the customer.

 

One UK businesswoman is claiming that as the bank did not alert her to unusual activity on her account it bears responsibility and should refund her.

 

These scams are sophisticated and easy to fall for. The resulting losses are much more serious than leaving a wallet on the train. Sympathy for the victim is natural. But clearly if the bank compensated every customer who fell for this kind of scam its losses would be huge.

 

What banks should do is make it clear under what circumstances the bank is liable and under what circumstances the customer is liable. Most bank websites contain lots of advice about how to avoid scams but they do not address this sensitive issue – unless it is buried in the terms and conditions which nobody reads anyway. They need to be more upfront about it as a way of alerting customers to the potential risks. –  Online Fraud Detection.