Cybercrime

Examining social engineering tactics and the escalating risks facing organisations, SoSafe, the security awareness and human risk management solution, has revealed that AI’s usage in cyberattacks has skyrocketed, with nearly nine in 10 respondents encountering some form of attempted breach.

The SoSafe report, called 2025 Cybercrime Trends, explored the views of 500 global security professionals as well as 100 SoSafe customers across 10 countries. AI was a major talking point raised by the respondents, with 91 per cent of all security experts anticipating a significant surge in AI-driven threats over the next three years.

Only 26 per cent express high confidence in their ability to detect these attacks. Given that 87 per cent of firms admitted to experiencing some form of AI-driven cyberattack in the last year, it is extremely concerning that just over one in four firms are confident in their own abilities to deal with an attack.

Social media and email account hacking reports jumped last year, according to Action Fraud data.

A total of 35,434 reports were made to the fraud and cybercrime reporting service in 2024, compared with 22,530 reports made in 2023.

Action Fraud has launched a campaign, supported by Meta, to encourage people to take an extra step of online protection by enabling two-step verification for each online account they have.

The most common motives for social media hacking were either investment fraud, ticket fraud or theft of the targeted account, Action Fraud said.

Adam Mercer, deputy director of Action Fraud, said: “As social media and email account hacking remains the most reported cybercrime this year, this Action Fraud campaign marks a critical issue for everyone who has online accounts.”

David Agranovich, security policy director, Meta, said: “Scammers are relentless and continuously evolving their tactics to try to evade detection, which is why we’re constantly working on new ways to keep people safe while keeping bad actors out.

“Two-factor authentication (2FA) is one crucial example of how people can add an extra layer of security to their Meta accounts, to help reduce the risk of scammers accessing your accounts.

“We’ve also started rolling out facial recognition technology to help people get back into compromised or hacked accounts and are always working on new ways to stay ahead of scammers.”

Hacking methods highlighted by Action Fraud included fraudsters gaining control of an account and impersonating the legitimate owner to convince other people to reveal authentication codes.

Cybercrime is an ever-evolving threat for every business, and the automotive industry is not immune, according to Gary Higham, Zuto's chief technology officer, who shares his advice to co-incide with cyber security awareness month

The sensitive customer data held by car dealerships makes them a target for cyber attacks and fraud and criminals are looking to exploit any potential vulnerabilities in their comms and IT systems.

Action Fraud is warning people to provide an extra layer of protection and enable the 2-Step Verification (2SV) option, as more than 33,600 people had their social media or email accounts hacked in the last year.

Data from Action Fraud, the national fraud and cybercrime reporting service, shows that more than 33,600 people reported that their online accounts had been hacked from August last year, with victims losing a total of £1.4 million.

Action Fraud is launching an awareness campaign on social media and email account hacking for Cyber Security Awareness Month this year, encouraging the public to protect their online accounts from fraudsters.

A cyber safety guide has been re-launched after worrying statistics showed 400,000 older people in Scotland have been targeted by online scams.

The Cyber and Fraud Hub – launched by the Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland – has reissued the materials to help senior citizens stay safe on the internet.

The guide was signposted to mark International Day of Older Persons today, and aims to address a wide range of web crime.

A teenager has been arrested in Walsall by the National Crime Agency, as part of the investigation into a cyber security incident affecting Transport for London (TfL).

The 17-year-old male was detained on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act offences in relation to the attack, which was launched on TfL on 1 September.

The NCA is leading the law enforcement response, working closely with the National Cyber Security Centre and TfL to manage the incident and minimise any risks.

Research from Chainalysis, the blockchain data company, has revealed worrying signs about the growth of crypto scams in China. Forty-three per cent of fraudulent inflows have gone to wallets that only became active this year, the highest amount of year-to-date (YTD) inflow into new wallets.

Previously, the highest number of scams in new wallets was 29.9 per cent in 2022. Interestingly, while crypto scams might be on the rise, their lifetime has actually decreased. According to the second part of the Mid-Year Crime Update, in 2020, scams that started at the beginning of the year lasted 271 days. Meanwhile, for scams beginning in 2024, the longest they have lived is 42 days.

An international operation coordinated by the National Crime Agency (NCA) has resulted in the arrest and extradition of a man believed to be one of the world’s most prolific Russian-speaking cybercrime actors.

The NCA has been investigating the online moniker ‘J.P. Morgan’ and his criminal network since 2015, with parallel investigations also being run by the United States Secret Service (USSS) and FBI.

https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/news/suspected-head-of-prolific-cybercrime-groups-arrested-and-extradited

Malware - or malicious software - is helping to fuel a murky underworld of bank card theft on the dark web, it has been revealed.

Criminals are selling software programs to other criminals which allow them to more easily harvest unsuspecting victims' personal card details - often on 'subscriptions' costing as little as £80 per month. 

If there is one thing that history has taught us about the evolution of cybercrime, it is that significant technological developments are a catalyst for dramatic shifts in criminal methods.

The evolution of cybercrime is marked by periods of rapid innovation followed by phases of consolidation. With artificial intelligence (AI) reshaping business operations, it's crucial to consider whether AI will spark a new era of cybercrime or simply enhance existing criminal efficiencies.