Credit card fraud in the UK fell by a dramatic 23% in the first half of 2009 with £232.8 million stolen by thieves against £304.2 million in the first six months of 2008. It is believed that a mixture of improved detection systems and new scams in different areas of the economy were behind the impressive fall. However, even though credit card fraud has fallen we all need to be on our guard in the future to put more pressure on the criminal gangs.
It was interesting to see that so-called credit card skimming or cloned credit card fraud fell from £88.8 million last year to £46.3 million this year and there was also a significant fall in Internet, phone and mail order credit card fraud which fell from £163.9 million to £134 million. The report also shows that there are 38 million dormant credit cards in the UK with total credit facilities of over £200 billion. While many people like to keep credit card on hand in case they encounter troubled times, these particular cards and customers may well be a "godsend" to criminal gangs.
Stay vigilant, stay on your guard and above all, ensure that you read your credit card statement each and every month and question any anomalies.
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