Abacus Daily Debt News

“Desperate” people turn to fraud in recession

People struggling to handle money in a recession become "desperate" and may turn to criminal activities, it has been noted.

Neil Munroe, the external affairs director for Equifax, stated that crimes such as fraud and identity theft usually rise during an economic slump.

"The logic behind this is that people become increasingly desperate when their financial circumstances get worse," he remarked.

In addition, he explained that consumers become more attracted by discount offers during a downturn and may take more risks with their personal information.

Becoming a victim of identity theft in this manner could result in debt being built up in a person’s name without their knowledge.

Recent figures from Cifas, the UK’s Fraud Protection Service, showed that there has been a sharp rise in facility takeover fraud, in which criminals gain access to an account.

Overall, fraud grew by 16 per cent in Britain last year, the organisation revealed.

By Jamie Price