UK fraud prevention service Cifas has commissioned CMG to build and host an online database which will be used by retailers and financial institutions to share and exchange information on criminal trends and activity.
The new Fraud Investigation Database (Find) has been commissioned against a background of increased fraudulent activity. According to the latest report from KPMG Forensics, the total number and value of fraud cases in the UK has surged this year, already exceeding the £224 million total in 2001. Major fraud cases being heard in the UK increased from 19 in the second half of 2001 to 35 in the first six months of this year.
Cifas says the new database will replace a paper-based system and will enable members to share information in real-time. The system will also, for the first time, allow users to identify past and present trends, as all of the information will be stored centrally.
Cifas - which numbers all the major banks, credit card companies, asset finance organisations, retail store cards, mobile phone companies and many insurers among its members - estimates that the system will prevent over £300 million of fraud in its first year.
Peter Hurst, chief executive of Cifas, says the system will go live in mid 2003. He adds: "Fraud is a multi-million pound industry...The only way we can stamp this out is to get all of the parties involved, from the police to our members and the victims, to share the information about these crimes."