A new research has revealed the UK areas most at risk of online shopping scams this New Year, with Bedfordshire coming out on top.
The study by legal tech company Reveal analysed the latest data available from the National Fraud and Cyber Crime Reporting Centre to see which UK Police Forces reported the lowest levels of online shopping scams as a percentage of all cybercrime and fraud reporting in the past 12 months. This was calculated against the population each force covers to find the number of cases per 100,000 people.
It found that the Bedfordshire area is most at risk of online shopping scams. 763 cases of online shopping fraud were reported in the time studied, and with Bedfordshire Police covering 682,000 people, this came out to 111.88 cases per 100,000 people.
Northamptonshire takes second place on the list, with 110.3 cases of online shopping fraud per 100,000 people. Northamptonshire Police saw 835 reports of the crime in the past 12 months and cover 757,000 people.
Coming in third place is Surrey. Surrey Police data shows for the 1,100,000 the force covers, there were 1,152 reports of online shopping fraud in the time studied, coming out to 104.73 cases per 100,000 people.
Taking fourth place is Cambridgeshire. Cambridgeshire Constabulary saw 876 cases of online shopping fraud reported in the past 12 months, and with the force covering 860,000 people, this comes out to 101.86 cases per 100,000 people.
Rounding out the top five is Thames Valley. Thames Valley Police saw 2,455 reports of online shopping fraud in the time studied, and the force covers 2,430,000 people, coming out to 101.03 cases per 100,000 people.
Commenting on the findings, Wendell Jisa, founder and CEO of Reveal said, “The findings highlight just how crucial it is for consumers to stay vigilant this New Year. With Bedfordshire and other areas reporting high levels of consumer fraud, it’s clear that scammers’ tactics are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Taking simple precautions, like verifying website URLs and avoiding unfamiliar sellers, can help protect against becoming a victim of online fraud going into New Year as well.”
