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Support for the victims of fraudAn assessment of the current infrastructure in England and Wales
Support for the victims of fraudSupport for victims of fraudAn assessment of the current infrastructurein England and WalesMark Button, Chris Lewis and Jacki TapleyCentre for Counter Fraud Studies,Institute of Criminal Justice Studies,University of Portsmouth
Contents04Executive Summary06Introduction07Methods08Fraud victim infrastructure23General issues25Conclusion26References27Appendices3
Support for the victims of fraudExecutive summaryProvision of support for the victims offraud can be assessed in three distinctareas: the reporting stage, the reportedstage and the criminal stage.The level of support to victims and their familiesvaries significantly depending upon the type offraud and what has happened vis-à-vis the fraud.Provision for the reporting of frauds is differentfrom many other crimes in that there are amultiplicity of bodies both statutory, charitableand private that will receive reports.These and an even wider range of bodies –including some solely on the web – also offeradvice to victims of fraud.The quality of provision amongst these differentbodies and websites also varies significantly.In terms of reporting there are some organisationsthat offer the facility to report in person, in writing,over the telephone and on the web. For examplethe police offer some of these services.The multiplicity of bodies creates challenges formany victims (as well as some professionals) ofwhich body to contact. Some of the bodies theymight be guided to, particularly on the web, mightalso not be an authoritative or safe source ofinformation.Some victims face a merry-go-round of contactingdifferent bodies in the hope that some might beinterested in their case.A central hub website and document that clearlysets out whom one should go to for different typesof fraud would greatly aid victims in reporting.Such a hub should also be publicized, includingto professionals working in this arena.4There is a diverse range of support offered from awide range of organisations, once a person reports.OFT has produced some excellent leaflets that offersupport and guidance to both victims and thosewho might deal with them.There are also a wide range of websites that offercomprehensive advice from statutory bodies suchas OFT, Consumer Direct, to private bodies such asCIFAS, the Fraud Advisory Panel, as well as victimdriven groups such as Think Jessica.Some organisations such as Prudential, have smallnumbers of victims which have access to them.Therefore they are able to offer extensive personalsupport. Other organisations such as Experian, withlarge numbers of victims engaging with them,have set up dedicated support services.Managing the expectations of victims is also amajor challenge. E-Bay and the City of LondonPolice provide examples of how they undertakethis.There was some evidence of limited support forsmall businesses, which could be enhanced further.Unlike some other crimes, there have been fewself-help groups established, such as, Think Jessicaand e-victims.org. There might be scope to helpsupport the creation of further support groups,including perhaps an online facility for victims toshare their experiences.The assessment showed there is also limited helpfor families and partners of victims of fraud whomay need specialist support to deal with partners/relatives of those have become chronic victims.When a report reaches the criminal justice stagethe victims may be covered by the Code of Practicefor Victims of Crime. There was evidence thatsome bodies such as the police, who are underthis obligation, were not meeting some of therequirements as they applied to victims of fraud,
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesExecutive summarysuch as, providing updates on their case andreferring or offering the services of Victim Support.Many bodies who deal with fraud victims (mainlyidentity fraud victims) are also beyond the Codeof Practice. Consideration should be given toextending its provisions to other bodies dealingwith victims of fraud.Finally the introduction of the National FraudReporting Centre by the NFA is likely to increasevolumes of victims reporting, leading toincreased numbers requiring support and raisingexpectations amongst some. These issues will needto be carefully managed and planned for by themultiplicity of bodies involved.Victim Support is likely to receive a much largerproportion of fraud victims as reporting increases.Currently they have no special provision for thosevictims. They will need to develop new specialistpackages to offer such victims.Many victims who are not identity fraud victimsare unlikely to get their money back and there isvery little provision to offer compensation whichneeds to be addressed. A suggestion would be thecreation of a fund using proceeds of crime seizuresand other types of contributions.The plurality of bodies involved in taking reports,advising and helping victims also highlights theneed for central oversight and co-ordination bya body such as the NFA. A steering group could: Act as a forum to share best practice; Identify common protocols and messagesto be communicated; Develop minimum standards; Manage a central website; Develop a branding that members can usethat signifies ‘safety’ and enforce its use (andpotential misuse); Monitor trends.The needs of victims, even of similar frauds, areoften very different. On reporting a fraud a victimshould undergo a needs based assessment.Depending upon the circumstances of the fraudand their needs, tailored support could then beprovided.5
Support for the victims of fraudIntroductionThere are hundreds of thousands of people whobecome victims of fraud every year. Some do notknow they are victims and some know but do notreport it. Only a minority of victims (bar identityfraud) report it. The support those victims receivevaries from nothing to the most extensive andvery best support that could possibly be provided.The structures that exist for fraud victims also varysignificantly from other crime victims. There issignificant support provided by the private sector,voluntary bodies, and state organisations.This report will seek to capture this infra-structureof support offered to the victims of fraud settingout the strengths, weaknesses and gaps. It willundertake this task by mirroring the three maincomponents of the ‘process’. First of all, support atthe reporting stage will be assessed, followed bythe ‘reported’ stage, and finally the ‘criminal justicesystem’ stage. This last stage often includes thepossibility of compensation for the victim, althoughfor some frauds, eg, credit card fraud, the financialauthorities will often compensate the victimwithout any further investigation.General observations will also be made on thewhole fraud support infra-structure. Generalrecommendations will be made throughout thereport, with the aim of stimulating further thoughtand debate.Whilst victims of crime in England & Wales haveachieved increasing recognition on the widercriminal justice agenda, due primarily to thepoliticisation of victims’ issues since 1990, this hastended to focus on victims of violent crime and, inparticular, on individuals considered vulnerable, forexample, the very young, the elderly and femalevictims of domestic abuse and sexual assault. As aconsequence, a plethora of initiatives and policieshave been introduced aimed at improving theservices and support offered to victims of crime,culminating in the Domestic Violence, Crime andVictims Act 2004, which introduced a Victim’s Codeof Practice, implemented from 2005. This Code ofPractice outlines the roles and responsibilities of thecriminal justice agencies towards victims of crime.However, victims of fraud have not achieved suchrecognition and hence then, the term ‘silent crime’ isbeing applied to fraud. Hence, victims are not beingoffered adequate levels of services and support.A further important distinction among victims isbetween those who are individual victims of fraudand corporate or small business victims.6
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesMethodsBefore we embark upon this analysis, however, itwould be useful to outline the methodology behindthis report. The research team conducted thefollowing activities during February to May 2009: 22 structured interviews with stakeholders; Review of relevant literature; Review of documentation given to victims; Review of relevant websites; Brief analysis of some of the 26 interviews to datewith victims.7
Support for the victims of fraudFraud victiminfrastructureBefore the infra-structure of support is discussed,it is worth distinguishing the different categoriesof victim by inter-action with the criminal justicesystem (or equivalent), which resembles a pyramid(see figure 1). At the bottom of the pyramid arethe majority of victims (bar identity fraud) whodo not report the second level is victims who doreport, but no further action occurs. The thirdlevel is fraud victims whose case is investigatedand goes to court. This final group can be furtherdivided between those who become witnessesin the case, and those whose case is investigatedand prosecuted, but who are not required to giveevidence.The level of support for victims of fraud mirrorsthe pyramid with those at the top receiving themost support. Those at the bottom who do notreport tend to receive very little to no support.Figure 1The victim pyramidEach of these areas will now be examined, withthe support for victims that currently exists.The existing support will also be analysed forgaps, weaknesses and strengths.Reportedfraud into thecriminal justicesystemReported fraud –No further actionUnreported fraud8Many frauds are not reported (OFT, 2006), withthe exception of identity fraud because of thelow likelihood of the return of any lost monies.The reasons for non-reporting include not beingaware of the fraud, not knowing who to reportto, and embarrassment. (see, Button et al, 2009).Therefore, it is important to examine what is inplace to encourage individuals who experiencefraud to report it. This will help to identify specifictypes of support that need to be established. Thereare a significant number of frauds that are reportedto agencies, but frequently there is no furtherformal action. Therefore, the support at thisstage needs to be explored. Finally, at the topof the pyramid there are a much smaller numberof victims where the case is investigated whichculminates in a prosecution, which can also bedivided between those who actually give evidenceand the ‘paper’ victims who are simply on the listand do not have to go to court.
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesFraud victiminfrastructureReporting stageIdentity FraudOne of the most striking differences between fraudand other crimes is the much larger number oforganisations that can and do have a role to playin reporting. The list below illustrates some of themost important of bodies a victim could report afraud to.Report receiving bodiesGeneric FraudThere are also a plurality of different bodies andwebsites offering advice and support for victims offraud, in addition to the above report receiving bodies.Some of the most important are listed below.Report receiving bodies The police Serious Fraud Office Consumer Direct Crimestoppers Local authority trading standards(some refer to Consumer Direct) Financial Services Authority CIFAS Banksafeonline (UK Payments) Banks and other credit providers/financial companies Credit reference agencies/CIFAS The PoliceAdvisory bodies Citizen’s Advice Bureau Federation of Small Businesses Fraud Advisory Panel Help the Aged/Age ConcernSelected key advisory websitesAll reporting and advisory bodies above also havetheir own websites, but there are some that existonline only. OFT Companies Investigation Branch(for fraud and serious misconduct by a companyor limited liability partnership)It is important to note there are also numerousspecialist bodies that deal with fraud and relatedissues in their own sector which a victim mayapproach. These include the Charities Commission,Insolvency Service, Department for Business,Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, AdvertisingStandards Authority, Legal Complaints Service,OFCOM, Telecommunications Fraud Forum ww.thinkjessica.comwww.e-victims.orgFor identity fraud the situation is even more complexas many victims report direct to the financialinstitution where they have experienced the fraud.9
Support for the victims of fraudFraud victiminfrastructureIn table 1 the volume of reports (where informationwas available) and the mechanisms to reportfraud are identified. The analysis shows not only awide range of organisations that accept reports,but also diversity in how fraud can be reported.Some bodies such as the police offer online,e-mail, telephone as well as in-person provision.Some organisations such as Banksafeonline,Crimestoppers and Consumer Direct offer facilitiesfor anonymous reporting. Banksafeonline, likeConsumer Direct’s report a scam facility also enablea report to be made to simply alert a scam (wherethe person may not be an actual victim). In someof the organisations it is not very clear where toreport. For example both the credit referenceagencies Equifax and Experian accept reports fromvictims of identity fraud, but a clear telephonenumber or website to report is not provided (unlessalready a subscriber to their services). Rather, theydirect the person through the credit report servicesthey offer.10
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesFraud victiminfrastructureTable 1Selected organisations fraud victims contactwhen trying to report and the provision forreporting offeredOrganisationAnnual volumeReporting provisionAreaSpeciic websiteSpecific telephoneBanksafeonline(UKPayments)75,000(many not victims)Online via emailE-banking scamswww.banksafeonline.org.uk/report scam.htmlNoneFinancial institutions1000 Telephonein personIdentity fraud,plastic fraud,cheque fraud etcn/an/aCIFAS77,000 Identityfraud in 2008Online, telephoneor e-mailIdentity ion.pdf0330 100 0180City of LondonPolice450-500In person,telephone, onlineMost aud/reportfraud.htm020 7601 6999Online, e-mailand postFraud andmisconduct bycompanies andlimited mer Direct5000 (not all victims)1Telephoneand onlineGeneral consumerissues, massmarketing x(Awareness only)0845 404 0506Crimestoppers1500(not all victims)Telephoneand onlineAll crimes including,general s.asp(Also the Integrity Line whichincludes malpractice at workwhich could include fraud)0800 555 111Equifax200 Email, onlineand telephoneIdentity fraudwww.equifax.co.uk/Contact-us/Contact Us Personal Solutions.html (filters through web)For membersonly (no clearnumber fornon-members)Experian3000 Email, onlineand telephoneIdentity fraudwww.experian.co.uk/creditreporttv/?sc 410006&bcd googlsearchlpb101108(via application for Credit Expert)0844 481 8000Telephoneand onlineFinancial ts/form.shtml0300 500 5000(General adviceline)Varies between localauthorities. For mostin person, letter,e-mail, onlineTrading fraud/scamsMany also link to Consumer DirectLocal numbersand publiciseConsumer Direct.MetropolitanPolice ServiceIn person,telephone, onlineMost fraudwww.online.met.police.uk/report.php(General Crime)0300 123 1212(General Crime)OFTTelephone,email and postMass marketingfraudFinancial ServicesAuthorityLocal AuthorityTrading StandardsThousandsnationally020 7211 8000Prudential20 Telephone,online and emailIdentity ces/fraud/(Gives email address)General numbersin different,PrudentialbusinessesSerious FraudOffice65 cases(but number of victimslikely to be larger)Telephoneand online(diverts to MPS too)Serious fraud meetingits criteria ( 1m loss,international, publicconcern, complex,need for specialpowers of SFO)www.sfo.gov.uk/cases/reportingafraud.asp0207 239 73881 Consumer Direct call volumes (on all consumer related issues) are in the regionof 1.5 million p.a. The 5,000 figure came from a very rough estimate of ‘fraud’ relatedwithin the CD database. The figure came from searching case notes for the word‘fraud’ in the database.cases provided to City of London Police in terms of potential fraud cases recorded11
Support for the victims of fraudFraud victiminfrastructureIdentity fraudIt is also important to note the plurality ismultiplied further with identity fraud, as there aredozens of banks, credit providers and financialbodies that potentially deal with victims of identityfraud. Only Experian, Equifax, Prudential andBanksafeonline are listed specifically in Table 1.Some victims of identity fraud may also have todeal with multiple organisations to report the fraud.For example, they may have to report to their bankor banks if multiple account holders, their creditcard company or companies and credit referenceagency (a report to one agency covers all three).However, unlike many other types of fraud, thereporting process in the vast majority of casesusually results in victims securing their money back(if there is a loss). Generally, for most identity fraudvictims it is a case of reporting it to their financialprovider(s) and that is the end of it. Some victimsmight go to the police or be told to do so, but inmost cases, this is rare.Multitude of reporting bodiesThe plurality of bodies involved does also createchallenges in reporting for many victims. It is worthconsidering the potential ‘routemap’ for certainvictims of fraud. A person who realises they havebeen the victim of a fake lottery scam will first haveto decide where to report. If they are not IT literatethey might start by going to the police. If they did,the chances are their case may not be taken up.They may be referred elsewhere. The victim mightthen go to the Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB), whomight advise them to contact Consumer Direct.An example of how a small business victim of fraudmay be affected by the complexity of reportingis demonstrated in figure 3. This victim was notconfident with IT and on realising they were thevictim of a scam that lost them 3k of life savings,went to the CAB in the first instance. The CAB thenadvised them to call Consumer Direct, who wereunable to help advising the victim to go the police.12The victim was told it was a ‘civil matter’ by thefront desk officer. The victim then decided to goto a solicitor at their own expense, but was toldit would involve further fees to pursue in the civilcourts or to secure any evidence to get the policeinvolved, which they could not afford. At this pointthe victim gave up, very dissatisfied with the wholeprocess.An example of how small businesses may beaffected by fraud the complexities of reportingis of a two-person team selling financial services,mainly through subcontractors, one of whomstarted inventing imaginary businesses to achieveincreased commission. Local police first tried tosay it was a civil matter between employer andemployee. They then resorted to passing the caseonto another force, where the alleged criminallived. During the delay the business defraudedcarried out a complex and expensive forensicinvestigation and passed all the evidence to thepolice and the CPS. Two years later the police andCPS are still deciding what offence to proceed withagainst the fraudster. Meanwhile, the whole costof the fraud has been borne by the small business,because of strict FSA regulations involvingrepayment to customers. Understandably, thevictims were dissatisfied with the process, butcontinued to pursue the fraudster in the hope thatthey may be brought to justice and compensationmay be forthcoming.
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesFraud victiminfrastructure“ Although the OFT cannot take up cases on behalfFigure 3The fraud victim merry-go-roundof individuals or give individual advice, anybodywho has received a phone call and/or sentmoney to the Canadian lottery can report it toOFT and help put a stop to the scam (MPS, n.d.). ”Go toCitizensAdvice BureauGo to solicitorbut fees requiredto secure evidenceto go to policePolice adviseit’s a civil matterand told to goto solicitorTold to phoneConsumer DirectTold toreport to policeThis is the experience of many victims facing thetwin challenges of where to report and securinginterest in their case from the chosen body. Therewould appear to be common accepted places toreport different types of fraud. For example, theCity of London Police investigate ‘boiler room’ fraud,OFT take an interest in lottery scams and financialinstitutions generally take the lead with identityfraud. There is, however, no authoritative list whichis publicly available setting out who takes the leadin different types of fraud. Such a document withclear ‘route maps’ for different types of fraud wouldgreatly aid the victim in reporting.This can be further illustrated by a victim usingthe web. If the victim is reasonably IT literate theymight do a Google search ‘reporting lottery scam’.Appendix 1 illustrates what they might discover.The top search item is the MPS website, which atthe very bottom of the listing, suggests reportingto the OFT Enquiries Unit on 08457 22 44 99(a general number), but it also states:Clarification with OFT revealed this is also out ofdate and that they should report to ConsumerDirect and to the local police if they have suffereda loss. Given this is one of the top returns onthe Google search, it demonstrates some of thechallenges that exist for victims trying to findwhere to report.The second highest is the pwhich is US based, followed by a mix of ‘unofficial’and ‘official’ websites and news items. On thesponsored side, Crimestoppers is top and there isalso the government website DirectGov.Another website is:www.fraudhelplineorg/?keyword scamwhich proclaims to assist any UK citizen. However,there is no means to trust this is a bona fidewebsite and it seeks personal information fromthe visitor when visiting the site. A victim of fraudin the face of many different sites and with noguidance as to their legitimacy might, therefore,fail to identify the most appropriate bodies toreport fraud, such as the police, Trading Standardsor Consumer Direct.The large numbers of organisations offeringfacilities to report fraud suggests there shouldbe a ‘clear route map’ of where victims shouldgo to according to the type of fraud they haveexperienced. That ‘route map’ should be agreedby all organisations involved and placed on acentral website (as well advertised via leaflets forthe less IT literate).13
Support for the victims of fraudFraud victiminfrastructureThis central ‘hub’ website could also provide adviceon reporting frauds (amongst other functions) andlinks to other bona fide websites. There should alsobe an official logo/trademark linked to the ‘hub’and any other bona fide website. For those victimsconcerned of their safety this would make seekingadvice much easier. Provision of support via theweb will be considered further in the next part ofthe report.Reported stageWhen a victim does report a fraud, organisationsprovide differing levels of support. Table 2 showssome of the main bodies accepting reports,offering advice and providing services to victims.They are mapped against some of the mostimportant services victims might expect. It is alsoimportant to note some bodies (the police in thecase of table 2) are covered by the Victims Codeof Practice, which will be explored further laterwithin this report “ The Fraud Advisory Panel has a website and apublication that sets out who to report to, butit does not capture the wide diversity of fraudie who should a Nigerian scam victim reportto or a fake lottery. There needs to be greaterbreakdown by type of fraud (Fraud AdvisoryPanel, n.d.a;b). ”14
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesFraud victiminfrastructureReported stage continued Table 2Organisations providing advice and support to victims of fraudOrganisationLetteror emailBanksafeonlinePPFinancial PConsumer Direct 3PPPPEquifaxPPCrimestoppers 2PPFraud Advisory PanelLocal AuthorityTrading StandardsPMetropolitanPolice ServicePOFTPPrudentialSerious Fraud OfficeVictim SupportRestitutionGeneral offerof referral tovictim supportor other bodyPP5PP5PDependsuponoutcomeof caseRefersconsumer toappropriatebodyPPPPPPPP44Dependsuponoutcomeof casePPPPPPDependsuponoutcomeof caseReferral tosocial servicesin some casesPForchronicvictimPDependsuponoutcomeof caseDependsupon casePForchronicvictim(ViaConsumerDirect)PPRefers asappropriateReferral toTradingStandards forchronic casesfor 121 supportPPDependsuponoutcomeof caseP7Dependsupon casePPPPProtectiveRegistrationPPPPFederationof Small BusinessesFinancial ServicesAuthorityReferralto CIFASPCIFASExperian 5Freecreditcheck1Citizens Adice BureauCity of LondonPolice121supportPPPDependsupon caseP1If requested2Crimestoppers is set up to receive anonymous reports,4Of credit recordthus any service provision very difficult5OFT materialsConsumer Direct refer many victims to other bodies such6OFT only investigates a handful of casesas local trading standards, OFT etc7Not specific to fraud CIFAS offers protective registration to its members315
Support for the victims of fraudFraud victiminfrastructureIt is worth commenting in a bit more depth onsome of the provision for victims, and highlightingbest practice.LeafletsMany organisations produce specific leaflets to begiven to victims or to be given out generally. TheOFT is one of the best providers of information.It produces numerous leaflets as well as DVDs.Some leaflets are aimed at actual victims, potentialvictims and those who may work with victims(carers for example). On identity fraud there aresome good leaflets provided to victims producedby Experian and the Home Office (Appendix 2provides copies of some of these leaftets). Bestpractice should be shared between organisationsand generic leaflets should be produced ondifferent topics. These could be made available inplaces where victims might seek support or reporta fraud as well as sent to victims on reporting afraud. As with websites, victims should be reassuredthe leaflet is bona fide by the use of an official logoor equivalent.Online supportA large amount of information is available on theweb provided by a wide range of organisations.Some of the more comprehensive resourcesare listed below, with the support they provideunderneath. For identity fraud, most financialinstitutions offer some advice relating toprevention, but given the large number of bodiesit was not possible to assess them all.www.identitytheft.org.ukA website supported by a range of public andprivate bodies focusing upon identity fraud. Itprovides prevention advice, what to do if you area victim and links to other websites.16www.getsafeonline.orgSupported by a range of public and privateorganisations offering prevention advice relatingto e-crime as well as links to other g.uk(UK Payments)Both of the above websites are run by UKPayments. The former focuses upon enhancingsecurity to reduce the risk of fraud occurringwhile banking online and the latter on raisingawareness on card fraud issues.www.cifas.org.ukCIFAS has extensive resources online for victimsof identity fraud, useful links as well as a meansto secure protective registration.www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/watch out/Scams(Consumer Direct)Consumer Direct’s website provides extensiveinformation on scams and how to avoid andhow to report.www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk(FSA)The FSA website provides advice on a range ofdifferent frauds such as boiler room, identity,chain letters and affinity fraud. The website alsooffers links and information to other forms ofsupport and enables online D/Fraud(City of London Police)The City of London police website offers a widerange of information and resources on differenttypes of fraud as well as links to report a fraud.www.met.police.uk/fraudalertThe MPS also offers similar provision to the City ofLondon Police, as well as updates on investigationson the same site.
An assessment of the current infrastructure in England and WalesFraud -prevention/helping-prevent-crime/identity-theftAs well as the facility to report frauds,Crimestoppers also provides prevention adviceonline covering identity fraud, scams and howto shop safe online.www.thinkjessica.comThe daughter of a scam victim, Marilyn Baldwin,has set up a website to provide support for thosewho are or are relatives/partners of chronic scamvictims.www.e-victims.orgThis website provides the latest informationand advice relating to e-scams and how toavoid becoming a victim.www.fraudadvisorypanel.org(Fraud Advisory Panel)A wide range of information relating to fraudlives on this site as well as guidance on how toreport. The site also houses the Panel’s newslettersand bulletins, and receives enquiries from victims,referring them on to other organisations.www.victimsupport.org.ukThe website provides generic advice for victimsof crime (there is no specific advice on nesty.page(Solicitors Regulatory Authority)Provides a range of information on different types
numbers of victims which have access to them. Therefore they are able to offer extensive personal support. Other organisations such as Experian, with large numbers of victims engaging with them, have set up dedicated support services. Managing the expectations of victims is also a major challenge. E-Bay and the City of London
