An article relating to this blog post on Finextra:
ID fraudsters switch tactics
The credit crisis has made it more difficult for fraudsters to set up fake accounts so they are increasingly targeting existing bank accounts instead, according to a report from a group of MPs.
See article
The All Party Parliamentary Group's report on bank and credit account fraud highlights the growing threat to existing accounts. Equally concerning is the misuse of accounts through Direct Debit fraud, which is recognised by banks and corporate organisations
as a growing problem.
These threats highlight the importance of establishing bank customers' identities and the relationship they have to an existing account by not only validating their bank details, but also additional information such as their name and address. Only by being
able to make the link between these pieces of information is it possible to ensure that payments data is correct at the point of input and this will minimise the risk of fraud.
Banks and corporates need to ensure they have the systems in place to check the accuracy of customer-supplied personal and bank account information. It is only when the appropriate systems have been implemented that the supplied name and address can be checked
against a reliable reference. Linking these key pieces of information is a vital measure in preventing criminals from hijacking accounts that do not belong to them.
Jonathan Williams
Director of Communication and Product Strategy, Experian Payments