VARs sent warning as UK fraud levels rocket
Report shows that figures on the increase as emerging types of fraud prove more popular
The value of UK fraud rocketed to £942m last year, the highest recorded level since 1995, according to market watcher KPMG.
KPMG’s Fraud Barometer report, which covers cases heard in the UK Crown Courts worth over £100,000, saw 222 prosecutions in 2005; 88 cases worth £249m were heard in the first six months of the year and 134 cases worth £693m in the last six months.
London and the south east accounted for £673m of the total value. Northen Ireland saw the lowest levels of fraud committed with £7.7m. Scotland saw levels drop from £29m to £18m. Last year also saw an increase in the number of VAT fraud prosecutions, according to the report.
Hitesh Patel, director of KPMG Forensic, said: “Resellers are not particularly vulnerable to fraud, but not all have the resources in place to protect against external fraud.”
While £420m worth of fraud was carried out by professional gangs last year, KPMG claimed that a greater proportion was carried out by company insiders, with the majority being management-level employees.
“Resellers also need to take a closer look at their vulnerability to insider fraud given the rising figures shown here,” Patel added.
The Barometer also identified an increasing frequency in identity theft in the UK, with internet phishing scams proving popular with fraudsters.
Eddie Pacey, director of credit at distributor Bell Microproducts, said: “I would agree with these figures. The channel has to implement systems and processes to limit the effects of fraud.”
However, Pacey added that the IT industry was particularly susceptible to fraud.