Company directors or those running their own businesses are most likely to fall victim to identity fraud, according to research by information services company Experian.
Those classified as most ‘at risk’ were ‘corporate top dogs’, those at the pinnacle of their careers, either at director level or running their own businesses.
The credit checking company’s Victims of Fraud Dossier also highlighted identity fraud hotspots. The results showed that London residents are almost twice as likely to fall victim to identity fraud compared to people living in the rest of the UK. Kensington is the capital’s identity fraud; residents are three and a half times more likely to fall victim compared to the UK average.
However, it is not only London’s home-owning elite who are at risk. Experian says that those in rented accommodation are also at risk because of the prominence of mailbox sharing and frequency of relocation.
The most common scamming technique was identified as ‘forwarding address fraud’ which now represents 36% of known incidents. This is where a fraudster redirects the victim’s post to a drop address that they then visit to collect the mail. Present address fraud, previously the most common method, declined by 30%.
Experian’s research also shows that the number of people reporting credit fraud has risen steeply over the last year – in 2007 more than 6,000 victims came forward and reported instances of fraud, compared with 3,500 in 2006. This represents a leap of 66% year-on-year.
Helen Lord, director of fraud and compliance at Experian said that there is no room for complacency. “Although some people are statistically more likely than others to become a victim, we should all be concerned. We are all potential victims.”
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