by Shaun Wing

Created on: March 16, 2010   Last Updated: March 17, 2010

There are a few organisations that deal with fraud, perhaps too many, just so they can create a ploy of deflecting blame for any malpractices since the fraud rate has climbed quite considerably; though the main one to take seriously is called CIFAS. In 2007 the emergence of a 'Serious Crime Act 2007' was introduced to get blue chip credit card companies and many other finance bodies to collaborate in producing accurate fraud trends that the UK public would be able to learn from and beware of.

The 'Fraud Prevention Service' named CIFAS has evolved from the information provided from its 260 members; all joining in unison in the fight against 'fraudulent activity.' Because of the information provided from its members, CIFAS is a weather-map for informative fraud resources from finance sectors and others for the public.

By viewing CIFAS fraud weather-map, you can gauge where your most likely to get hit with fraudulent activity, partly due to the fact there are quite a few means in which a fraudster can collect and maintain information from you, especially from the world, wide, web. CIFAS has regular updates to enable your online activity as safe as it can be; it isn't claiming that you won't be 100% secure because that is impossible but the 'fraud trends' certainly can make you aware of what you should be looking out for and how much online security you can publish without getting caught in the 'victim net.'

CIFAS was the main organisation that gave the 'Chip and Pin' statistics back to the Home Office that showed an increase of identity thefts based on that form of technology, all provided by the retail sector who bought into the 'Chip and Pin' identity codes around five years ago. This type of identity theft has been on the rise consistently since its introduction; the fact that mobile technology has increased in gigabyte storage hasn't helped the fraudulent figures. Anyone can secretly film the 'Chip and Pin' transaction without detection from CCTV or any other retail surveillance. Detection is not at all obvious as the fraudster often is gazing elsewhere looking like an average shopper. Not enough to prosecute. The signature methodology is surprisingly more effective against new technology fraud, especially mobile technology, so we may see the retail market opt for the signature reader technology instead. 'Watch this space,' or shall I say 'Write in this space.'

Sadly the worst place to seek help for online fraud is the police; even though their department

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