UK phishing up 8000% in two years, says FSA

Government report shows massive rise in scams.

A report presented to the UK government by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), the UK's financial watchdog organisation, indicates that phishing incidents have increased by an enormous 8000% in the last two years.

The figures reveal a total of over £23 million raked in by scammers in the first half of 2006, with a similar haul expected for the rest of the year. Just 312 phishing incidents were recorded in the first half of 2005, compared with over 5,000 in the first six months of 2006.

While some commentators have mentioned the impact of improved detection and reporting on the figures, there is little doubt that increasing amounts of spam carrying phishing attempts, and increasing sophistication in the design and execution of phishing, are tricking personal details, and thus money, out of more and more people.

More details of the report, made by the FSA to a House of Lords select committee, are carried by the BBC.

15 December 2006

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