According to Action Fraud, the National Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre in the UK, as many as one in four small businesses fall victim to fraud, resulting in an estimated loss of £18.9 billion to SMEs in the UK. It’s a staggering figure and depending on the extent of the losses is potentially catastrophic for small businesses.
It’s clear that fraud is an increasing threat to SMEs, so we want to highlight some useful information and prevention strategies:

How fraudsters operate online

Fraudsters are stealthy. They’re constantly finding new ways to commit fraud online and improve their techniques, through schemes such as Phishing, Spoofing or Social Engineering.

They can do this through places like the dark web—a corner of the internet where criminals can interact without being traced. This is where fraudsters buy and sell data and share information about how to go about committing fraud, what tools to use etc.

Fraud Prevention

Don’t trust strangers: Fraudsters often pretend to be someone from a trustworthy profession, such as a policeman, a charity fundraiser, or an employee at your bank. These people will never usually ask you for sensitive information such as passwords, so if they do, be suspicious.

Keep your tech up-to-date:Computers are a popular target for fraudsters. Scammers can create websites containing malicious code and emails with viruses attached in an attempt to steal important details. Downloading the latest anti-virus software and using an up-to-date operating system will prevent most of these attacks.

Requests to move money: A genuine organisation will never contact you out of the blue to ask for your full password or to move money to another account. Only give out your personal or financial details to use a service that you have given your consent to, that you trust and that you are expecting to be contacted by.

Paying in advance: Fraudsters usually want your money quickly so they can make a swift exit. One way they do this is by asking people for money up-front. If someone sounds eager for payment, consider whether they are for real.

Passwords: It’s good practice to use different passwords each time you create an account online. Using a single password means that if a fraudster cracks one account, they can gain access to the lot. If you have trouble remembering your passwords, use a password management tool like LastPass.

Unsolicited emails: Only click on the links or open any attachments from senders you trust.

Secure Wi-Fi: Check that the network you’re using is secure before you make any financial transactions.

What to do if you fall victim to fraud:

1. Report it to Action Fraud
2. Contact us at: [email protected]