PIMFA
7 May 2021
PIMFA launches fraud prevention guide as part of campaign to protect consumers from online fraud
PIMFA, the trade association for wealth management, investment services and the investment and financial advice industry, has launched a guide to online fraud prevention for member firms as part of its campaign to make the internet safer for consumers.
The guide for firms provides information on the most common examples of fraud that PIMFA has identified in the past few years, including impersonation fraud, retail bond fraud, social media fraud and cloned websites. It also provides examples of real-life situations in which a firm or its clients were the victims of fraud, as well as advice on best practice to help prevent fraudsters from gaining access to clients.
This guide for firms is the next stage in PIMFA’s continuing work to protect consumers from online scams and fraud as part of its Financial and Mental Wellbeing campaign. A guide for consumers will follow shortly, alongside a refreshed ScamSafe microsite containing more useful information for firms and clients.
It comes as PIMFA today (7 May 2021) joins with 16 other organisations championing consumers, and representing civil society and business to warn the UK risks failing in its ambition to be the safest place in the world to be online unless it uses new laws to protect people from an avalanche of online scams.
In a joint letter to the Home Secretary and Digital Secretary, 17 organisations have urged the government to include online scams in its proposed Online Safety Bill – which could be announced in next week’s Queen’s Speech – so that consumers are better protected against the devastating financial and emotional harm caused by these crimes.
The organisations that have signed the letter include Which?, the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, Carnegie UK Trust, UK Finance, the Personal Investment Management and Financial Advice Association (PIMFA), the City of London Corporation, City of London Police, The Investment Association, Association of British Insurers (ABI), MoneySavingExpert and Age UK.
Online fraud is a growing threat to consumers and advice firms alike. Last year, Action Fraud received 356,649 reported cases of fraud (1) with £2.1bn estimated to have been lost to fraudsters.
Of the total, investment frauds that encourage consumers to buy unsuitable, or non-existent, investment products, pension liberation scams, Boiler Room scams and Ponzi or Pyramid schemes, accounted for less than 10% of all reported crimes (20,152 reports) but 25% of all financial losses at £501m.
Action Fraud figures show a dramatic increase in online fraud over the past year perpetrated by organised criminals and PIMFA is working alongside Which? UK Finance, The Money and Mental Health Policy Institute and The Carnegie Trust amongst others who believe that the best way to disrupt these organised criminals and protect consumers online is through the inclusion of financial harm in the Government’s upcoming Online Safety Bill, which we expect to be included in the Queen’s Speech in May.
Giulia Lupato, Head of Regulatory Policy and Compliance at PIMFA, commented: “We know that fraud has been moving online for some time and is becoming ever more sophisticated. We also know that those carrying out these frauds are nearly always organised criminals and that they are targeting our sector in particular – often in combination with other tactics such as impersonation fraud.
“We hope the fraud prevention guide will help firms to protect themselves and their clients as much as possible from fraudsters, and we would encourage members to continue to keep us informed of any attacks they experience or hear of, so that we can continue to update the guide when necessary.
“At the same time, we continue to believe the Online Safety Bill offers one of the clearest ways to provide a legal framework that offers consumers greater protection from online fraud.
“PIMFA and our partners in this campaign continue to urge the Government to reconsider including financial harm in the Online Safety Bill. Doing so would save thousands of potential victims suffering enormous financial and mental distress, loosing lifetime savings for many, and would be one of the best possible ways to disrupt organised crime.”
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Notes for Editors:
About PIMFA – the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association
PIMFA is the trade association for firms that provide investment management, investment services and advice to everyone from individuals and families to charities, pension funds, trusts and companies.
The sector currently looks after £1.65 trillion in private savings and investments and employs over 63,000 people.
PIMFA represents both full and associate member firms. Full members provide a range of financial solutions including financial advice, portfolio management, as well as investment and execution services. They assist everyone from individuals and families, to charities and pension funds, all the way to trusts and companies. Associate members provide professional services to the PIMFA community.
PIMFA leads the debate on policy and regulatory recommendations to ensure that the UK remains a global centre of excellence in the wealth management, investment advice and financial planning arena. Our mission is to create an optimal operating environment so that its member firms can focus on delivering the best service to clients, providing responsible stewardship for their long-term savings and investments.
PIMFA has made numerous recommendations to the FCA regarding the Future of Advice, the Future of Supervision the FSCS levy – read more.
PIMFA was created in 2017 as the outcome of a merger between the Association of Professional Financial Advisers (APFA) and the Wealth Management Association (WMA) with a history as a trade association since 1991 – read more.
Further information can be found at pimfa.co.uk
Contact
For further information on this release or other press matters please contact:
Matthew West, PIMFA PR Manager – MatthewW@pimfa.co.uk, +44 (0)20 7382 0376
Sheena Gillett, PIMFA Communications & PR Director – sheenag@pimfa.co.uk, +44 (0)20 7011 9869 / +44 (0)7979 493225
