Donated to Take Five to Stop Fraud, the anti-fraud campaign run by UK Finance, the cash will used to fund an advertising campaing warning consumers about common financial scams.

This pledge of support flows from the work of a recently established Online Fraud Steering Group, which brings together representatives from the technology and banking industries and law enforcement to work together to tackle fraud.

David Postings, chief executive of UK Finance, says: “Tackling fraud is an absolute priority for the banking and finance industry, but it’s one that requires work across different sectors of the economy. We are delighted that these major technology companies have agreed to support the work of Take Five as part of our collaborative approach to tackling fraud. The advertising that is being provided will enable Take Five to reach a wider audience and is an important step in our efforts to help consumers stay protected from fraud and scams."

While the cash support is welcome, it is a mere drop in the ocean compared to money lost by UK consumers from the proliferation of scam advertising hosted by social media sites, such as Facebook.

The UK Government in May took the first step in tackling online investment scams by including user-generated fraud from social media sites within scope of the Online Safety Bill. However, the limited scope of the provisions in the Bill continue to vex campaigning bodies.

Tim Fassam, director of government relations and policy at Pimfa commented at the time: "While the Bill attempts to tackle fraud via user generated content on social media sites and dating apps, paid for online adverts from fraudsters and cloned - and therefore fake - investment firm websites appear conspicuous by their absence from it."