UK Finance ‘shocked but not surprised’ by rise in fraud as tech firms ‘profit’ from it

The cost of fraud

In its latest figures, UK Finance revealed that criminals stole £1.28bn in the UK last year through payment fraud and described it as a “national security threat” that is being accelerated by the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

The alarming truth is that the tech platforms are financially benefiting from fraudulent advertising. It’s wholly wrong that other sectors are knowingly profiting from fraud and scams due to loose controls around advertising

“We are well aware that AI lowers the barrier to entry for criminals to make their scams more sophisticated and make more of us vulnerable to clicking on links and content,” said Ray.

She added that UK Finance members – the banks – are investing heavily in technology to fight this fraud, including using quantum analytics and AI.

“Our members have been using AI to counteract fraud for many, many years now, and that certainly needs to keep pace. They deploy very sophisticated behavioural analytics across their transaction monitoring and invest billions of pounds in resources to break the spell,” said Ray.

But she said despite their tech expertise and deep pockets, tech firms need to do more to contribute to the fight against fraud.

“They need to be coming more meaningfully to the table and financially contribute to public-private data sharing partnerships to start moving the dial on fraud,” she said. “Until they actually contribute meaningfully, providing financial contributions, they will continue to be a quieter voice at the table, and banks will continue to be the driving force behind these partnerships.”

The UK Finance annual report revealed that 66% of authorised push payment (APP) fraud, which accounted for £576m, originated on social media platforms.

APP fraud, which increased by 19% last year, occurs when criminals use fake websites and emails to trick consumers into authorising payments to them. It reported a 7% increase in APP attacks, bringing the total to over 280,000.

Last year, UK banks reimbursed 88% of customers who fell victim to APP scams to the tune of £173m, according to the Payment Systems Regulator.

The UK Finance report also revealed that losses from remote purchase card fraud, whereby criminals use stolen card information to make online purchases, rose by 3% to £423.5m.

Losses from remote banking fraud, which occurs when scammers take control of a person’s computer, fell by 27% to £104.4m. However, the number of cases increased by 11% to over 37,000, following a 21% increase in mobile banking cases. Contactless fraud losses increased by 8% to £46.8m.  

In April 2025, banks and tech firms came together in an initiative to share information on fraud to give them visibility of attacks targeted at customers. The collaboration is part of Stop Scams UK’s intelligence-sharing pilots, which have brought together banks such as HSBC, NatWest and Santander with tech firms Amazon, Google and Meta.

Mobile telecommunications firm Three, BT, challenger bank Monzo, Lloyds Bank and tech giant Meta are among the members that published the Stop Scams UK joint statement.

According to the statement this year presents a unique opportunity for collaboration. “Through Stop Scams UK, tech, telecoms companies and financial services providers have joined forces to share technology, data and intelligence to combat fraudsters on the platforms where they operate, helping to boost consumer confidence and promote economic growth,” it said.