Contact Centres Fall Victim to International Criminal Gangs

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The rise in fraudulent calls made to the UK by international criminal gangs has almost doubled in the last 12 months.

According to a new report from fraud protection and authentication company Pindrop, 52% of fraudulent calls made to UK financial institutions in 2016 originated from countries outside of the UK. This is up 24% compared to 2015, indicating the growing prominence of call centre fraud as an international crime.

Matt Peachey, Vice President and General Manager, Pindrop International, comments: “Our research has found that criminals are branching out and attacking UK financial organisations and their customers, across international lines.

“This highlights the need for organisations to get a better understanding of criminals who are using the phone to ultimately steal from customers.”

Using its patented Phoneprinting technology, Pindrop analysed millions of calls to UK call centres, compiling the findings into the 2017 Call Centre Fraud Report. Of the calls analysed it was also found that almost none of the calls hitting UK call centres originated from landlines.

According to the 2017 report, almost 90% of fraudulent calls made to the UK used mobile phones and internet calls, suggesting these go-to tools for fraudsters have further facilitated the international reach of the calls made.

Fraudsters are also using spoof caller ID tools and distortion apps to disguise their voices and conceal their location so that their identity and source of the call remains hidden from call centre agents.

Combined, these techniques have created more opportunities for profit, as fraudsters walked away with more money per call in 2016. Pindrop Labs’ research shows that the average loss per fraud call in the UK jumped up to £0.86, a sharp increase from the £0.51 per call in 2015.

Peachey continues: “Fraudsters are getting better at their craft, honing their skills and becoming more confident at using techniques to bypass current defences on the phone channel.

“Organisations need to be just as vigilant on what has consistently been a neglected entry point, in the same way they do with their online channels.

Matt Peachey

“This rise in borderless fraud via the phone serves is a stark warning – organisations are leaving their customers vulnerable to attack. A better line of defence on this channel is needed.

“With a multi-layered approach to authentication, organisations can quickly and accurately identify the risk factors that can better track fraud attempts across multiple channels and quickly detect where these attempts originate.”

To find out more, visit www.pindrop.com

Author: Robyn Coppell

Published On: 27th Apr 2017 - Last modified: 2nd May 2017
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