National Identity Fraud Prevention Week

The 7th annual National Identity Fraud Prevention Week starts today in the UK, and comes with some shocking statistics from a new research paper released by Fellowes.

The survey says that a full 7% of the UK population (4 million people) have been victims of identity fraud. According to fraud prevention service provider CIFAS, 80,000 have been targeted this year alone! The average cost of an identity theft is £1,190, with some cases involving larger sums around £9,000.

UK police have provided this list of things to do to help prevent fraud:
- Check for unfamiliar transactions on bank statements.
- Shred all documents containing sensitive information using a cross cut shredder before throwing them away – something Tory policy chief Oliver Letwin should bear in mind.
- Investigate mail that goes missing.
- Carry out regular personal credit report checks
- Redirect post for at least six months when moving house.
- Limit the amount of personal information shared when using social networking sites.

More identity fraud fighting tips and advice can be found on the campaign's website: http://www.stop-idfraud.co.uk