The Garlik UK Cybercrime Report
Credit crunch drives cybercrime wave
The number of cybercrimes committed in the UK soared last year driven by a huge increase in online financial fraud. Our annual UK cybercrime report in collaboration with leading criminologists indicates that online financial fraud grew significantly jumping nearly twenty percent to 250,000 incidents in 2007 compared with 207,000 in 2006.
Further increases can be expected as more people turn to financial crime to weather the worsening economic climate. At Garlik, we believe that now more than ever individuals need to be vigilant and keep track of where their personal information appears online as we can expect to see real growth in online financial fraud as the credit crunch continues.
Growing black market for personal information
More than three and a half million online crimes were carried out last year – a rise of nine per cent on the previous year’s figures.
Our study also points to the growing professionalisation of cybercrime and specifically online financial fraud. This year’s research reveals that Britons’ personal details and ‘stolen identities’ are increasingly being traded illegally on the Internet and, in the process, fuelling a black market of personal information which has more than doubled (from 27 to 57 different illegal trading networks) over the past nine months. In fact, to date this year more than 19,000 illicit traders have been identified.
Social networking sites fuel online harassment
More than two million victims suffered abusive or threatening emails, false or offensive accusations posted on websites and blackmail perpetrated over the internet, up from 1,944,000 in 2006. The report suggests the growing popularity of social networking sites has driven this, providing a new widespread medium for online harassment virtually impossible to police.
