Major banks putting consumers at risk of identity fraud
A number of major UK banks have been accused of putting customers at increased risk of becoming victims of identity fraud, after they were found to have dumped account details for thousands of their customers outside branches.
Identify fraud is a crime that has been on the rise over recent years, costing over one and a half billion pounds a year and rising at a rate of around thirty percent each year. And with banks dumping personal financial details of consumers in public areas outside the branches, it seems that things are getting ever easier for identify thieves and fraudsters.
Customer account details were found dumped outside eleven branches in skips, bin-bags, and bins. The information on the documentation that had been discarded outside included the names, addresses, and account numbers of thousands of customers.
The eleven banks and financial institutions that have been named as being guilty of dumping consumer account details outside the branches include: Halifax-Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Alliance & Leicester, Royal Bank of Scotland, NatWest, Nationwide Building Society, the Co- operative Bank, HFC Bank, Clydesdale Bank, the Scarborough Building Society and United National Bank.
According to the Information Commissioner, the banks involved took part in what has been described as an 'unacceptable' breach of the Data Protection Act, putting thousands of customers at increased risk from identify thieves and fraudsters.
David Smith, the Deputy Information Commissioner, stated: 'It is unacceptable for banks and other organisations to carelessly discard their customers' information.'
He added: 'It is vital that banks and other organisations take security seriously. If they do not, they not only risk further action from the Information Commissioner but also risk losing the trust of their customers. Individuals must feel confident that banks and other organisations are safeguarding their personal information.'
Tom Smith
20th March 2007
More Information:
- Identity Theft
Identity theft is a major issue in the UK, and with good reason. It has been estimated that it can take up to sixty hours of work to recover a stolen identity, and in the worst cases, cost up to £8000 to put right. But what can be dome to prevent this? - ‘Vishing’ – A New Type Of Credit Card Fraud
With the full integration of Chip and PIN technology in 2005, credit card fraudsters now have to look for ever more ingenious ways to try and defraud UK credit cardholders. Topping this list is a very ingenious and sophisticated telephone scam that fraudsters are using to obtain the credit details of cardholders – ‘vishing’.
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