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Fraud ‘costing UK businesses £130 billion each year’, report suggests

A report published by the Centre for Counter Fraud Studies at the University of Portsmouth has suggested that fraud losses costs UK businesses £130 billion each year.

According to the data, losses incurred as a result of fraud have risen by 56.5% since 2009. Reducing fraud losses by 40% would ‘free up more than £76 billion each year’, the report stated.

It also found that 80% of global fraud losses are ‘larger than the UK’s entire GDP’.

Commenting on the findings, Jim Gee, Chair of the Advisory Board at the Centre for Counter Fraud Studies, said: ‘Sadly, too many organisations adopt a reactive approach to fraud and only look to tackle it once it has taken place, and losses have already occurred. A change of perspective is needed. Fraud is an ever present, high volume, low value problem and only a small proportion is detected.

‘We need to view fraud as a business cost – by understanding the nature and scale of the cost, we can reduce its extent – enhancing the profitability of companies and ensuring better funded public sector and charitable organisations.’