Recent police statistics show that more the ?190,000 a day is lost in the UK by victims of cyber-crime

Recent police statistics show a 24% increase in in reported money lost to cyber-crime between April and September 2018, with a massive ?34.6m reported being stolen. In those 6 months 13,357 people UK citizens reported cyber-crimes to the police, 5000 of those people had either their social media or email accounts hacked, costing them a huge ?14.6m.

We still await the annual crime figures for 2018, however these statistics warn us to expect yet another huge rise in cyber-crime.

2018 was a huge year for the fight against cyber-crime, with hope that the release of the GDPR would help minimise the number of victims and amount lost. Howeve,r criminals came up with new ways to trick users, with fake TV licence renewals currently being one of the most successful phishing attacks in the UK.

Action Fraud, the UKs centre for reporting scams, fraud and cyber-crime, have reminded UK victims to be vigilant. Commander Karen Baxter said criminals were targeting people?s social media accounts and email accounts ?in a bid to make money and steal personal details?, she expressed her concern that it could leave victims ?at risk of identity theft.?

Cyber Wise would like to remind you that it is important to take all security procedures seriously when creating and managing online accounts. Creating strong passwords that are different for all online accounts is a small difference that greatly improves the security of your personal data.