Crime survey reveals one in 10 are victims of fraud and cyber crimes

The “experimental” numbers were published for the first time today by the Office for National Statistics alongside its latest crime survey findings.

They showed an estimated 3.8 million fraud and two million computer misuse offences were experienced by victims in the year prior to interview.

Questions on the categories were added to the Crime Survey for England and Wales from October. The decision to start monitoring this particular area coincides with investment by forces across Yorkshire to tackle these kind of offences.

Humberside Police’s Chief Constable Justine Curran said the figures showed the changing nature of crime, with more happening away from the public eye.

She said the force had invested in a cyber crime unit, which gives advices to businesses and young people, but was also setting up a cyber investigation unit.

“It will deal with pure cyber crime, such as server attacks and phishing, where the computer itself is the target,” she said.

In North Yorkshire – the third lowest overall crime location alongside Devon and Cornwall and Dyfed-Powys – the threat of cyber crime has also been a focus.

The county’s Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan said: “Reported crime went up by eight per cent, slightly less than the national average and something which can partly be explained by more rigorous reporting practices.

“However, we are far from complacent and have made a number of key investments including over £3m to better protect vulnerable people, a new cyber crime unit and technology to help in the fight against cross border crime.”

The ONS kept the numbers generated from fraud and cyber crime questions separate from its headline estimated figure of 6.3 million crimes perpetrated against adults in the year to March, which was a six per cent fall on the previous 12 months.

Debate around the impact of improved recording of crime continued, with South Yorkshire Police linking this to a 47 per cent rise in violence against the person without injury in its patch.

Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Jason Harwin said: “We are capturing incidents from a wider range of locations including prisons and schools, which allows us to better understand and respond to the problem.”

West Yorkshire Police said greater compliance with recording standards and a drive to encourage the recording of domestic abuse and sexual offences, past and present, had impacted on its figures.

It said that while total recorded crime in West Yorkshire was up by 28.6 per cent, the true rise in the risk of becoming a victim was only 4.5 per cent once those factors were taken into account.

Mark Burns-Williamson, West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, said rises in public order, violence without injury and sexual offences were a concern.

“Some of these increases can be accounted for in part by historic offences, increased confidence in reporting and more consistent recording of these crime types.

“I will be raising this with the Temporary Chief Constable to discuss what more can be done to bring these figures down, but I am expecting a new baseline to be established this year.”