The landscape of financial crime is shifting, and keeping pace is imperative. While the buzzword’ identity theft’ dominates the conversation around fraud prevention, there are less-discussed but equally destructive forms of fraud we cannot afford to ignore. While safeguarding one’s identity is crucial, it shouldn’t eclipse the attention that other types of scams deserve, particularly those that directly target your hard-earned money.
The Overemphasis on Identity Theft
Identity theft certainly poses a serious threat to individuals, potentially wreaking havoc on credit ratings, reputation, and future financial transactions. But let’s not forget identity theft is, in many cases, contingent on your financial standing and creditworthiness. That means there is a limit to how much damage can be inflicted by exploiting your identity alone.
Courier fraud, for instance, is a type of scam that can drain your life savings in the blink of an eye. The scale of loss from courier fraud alone runs into millions, with individual victims losing tens of thousands of pounds weekly. These are scams that often directly access the funds you already have, making them potentially far more damaging than identity theft.
The Illusion of Total Control
Courier fraud typically involves a fraudster posing as someone from your bank or a trusted organisation. They manipulate you into revealing your bank details and then send a courier to collect your bank card from you, promising to ‘secure’ it. Once they have your card and details, they can empty your bank account. The loss is immediate, tangible, and devastating. Courier fraudsters also coerce victims into withdrawing large sums of money or buying high-value jewellery, which the victims then hand over to the “courier.”
A bitter pill to swallow is that identity theft is almost impossible to prevent entirely. No matter how cautious you are, you cannot wholly control the safety of your personal details. Despite your best fraud prevention efforts, your information can still be harvested and sold on the dark web. This makes it even more critical to shift some focus towards types of fraud that can be averted through actionable steps.
Take Control Where You Can: Simple Changes, Big Impact
You can implement practical changes to protect your bank accounts and credit cards from most attacks. These include measures like setting up two-factor authentication, setting withdrawal limits, and enabling instant transaction alerts. Prioritise these methods in any comprehensive fraud awareness programme to prevent attempts to drain money from your accounts. Other simple changes you can make include:
Opt for Paperless Statements:
Switching to paperless statements removes the risk of your financial and personal data being intercepted through your mail. This simple move can significantly reduce your exposure to identity theft.
Keep Contact Details Current:
Ensure that your phone number and email address are up to date with your financial institutions. This enables banks to reach you promptly if there are any changes or suspicious activities related to your accounts.
Close Dormant Accounts:
Inactive or dormant accounts are low-hanging fruit for fraudsters. By keeping them open, you’re providing an easy avenue for potential financial theft. Close any accounts you no longer use to eliminate this risk.
Sign Up for Online Servicing:
Many fraudsters exploit the absence of online account management as a backdoor into your financial life. Registering for online servicing allows you to monitor your accounts regularly, making it easier to spot and report suspicious activity. It also stops fraudsters from accessing your accounts by registering on your behalf.
Monitor Your Credit File:
Regularly reviewing your credit report can alert you to unauthorised searches and applications. Early detection of these red flags can prevent further damage and help you take corrective actions promptly.
What Needs to Happen Next
It’s time to rebalance the scales in our collective conversation about fraud prevention. Identity theft should not be downplayed but should also not monopolise our attention and resources. We can take more effective preventative steps by increasing awareness of other types of fraud that immediately threaten the money we already hold in our accounts. After all, fraud prevention is not merely about safeguarding potential credit but protecting the money you already have. Therefore, diversifying our understanding and approach to fraud awareness can significantly improve our defences against these types of fraud.
