UK fraud losses rise to GBP £629.3 million despite prevention gains

New figures show that fraud losses in the UK have grown in the first half of the year, despite advances in fraud prevention and increased losses being recovered for victims.

According to the latest UK Finance Half Year Fraud report, criminals stole GBP £629.3 million in the first half of 2025, which marks a three per cent increase compared to the same period the previous year.

Authorised push payment (APP) fraud, in which victims are tricked into transferring money to accounts controlled by criminals, accounted for GBP £257.5 million of the losses-up 12 per cent year-on-year. The report found that 66 per cent of APP fraud originated online, while 17 per cent was initiated via telecommunications networks.

At the same time, banks managed to prevent GBP £870 million worth of unauthorised fraud using advanced security systems, representing a 20 per cent year-on-year increase and equivalent to 70 pence in every GBP £1 attempted.

Expert reaction

"Sadly, the UK Finance Half-Year Report suggests that while the industry is pushing back, criminals are pushing harder and, for now, gaining ground. In the first half of 2025, every minute, there were £2,300 of confirmed fraud losses, £5,590 in attempted fraud stopped, and eight people were victimised.

"Despite new reimbursement rules and public awareness drives such as 'Stop! Think Fraud', the data shows that criminals continue to exploit weak controls in the digital ecosystems of tech giants, with most APP scams being traced to online sources."

Jonathan Frost, Director of Global Advisory for EMEA at BioCatch, gave his assessment of the ongoing challenges facing the finance sector regarding fraud prevention.

Discussing the increase in APP fraud, Frost said:

"The PSR's mandatory reimbursement requirements have undoubtedly strengthened consumer protection, returning millions to victims and creating an incentive for banks to set up and invest in better fraud and financial crime detection.

"The policy has struggled, however, to stop the underlying crime, with APP fraud continuing to rise. Preventing scams before the transaction occurs must be the goal. This requires deploying better fraud detection tools and behavioural technology to decrease APP losses, cutting off mule accounts that enable such fraud, and engaging in meaningful cross-sector collaboration between regulators, banks and tech firms.

"The forthcoming independent review of the reimbursement limit will reveal how the UK intends to balance consumer protection, fraud prevention, and enforcing accountability. An emphasis on a more proactive, intelligence-led approach will be crucial in disrupting the scam economy at its source."

Frost pointed to human factors driving increased fraud, with criminals using a range of manipulative tactics:

"The increase in fraud is about human vulnerability. APP scams work because they turn customers into unwitting accomplices, and awareness campaigns alone can't solve that. Fraudsters are now using mobile and remote channels to bypass authentication and pressure victims in real time. The financial sector has made huge strides, cutting criminal profits dramatically, but the same can't be said for tech platforms. With key provisions of the Online Safety Act delayed, criminals have a clear runway to keep exploiting the system."

Prevention and collaboration

Reflecting on the trend in unauthorised fraud, Frost highlighted progress made by banks:

"The drop in unauthorised fraud losses is encouraging and provides room for cautious optimism. The fact that Payment Service Providers have blocked a massive £870 million in attempted fraud, equivalent to stopping 70 pence of every £1 targeted, is proof that investment in prevention is paying off."

Despite this improvement, Frost stated that the industry needs to work more closely together to stem the rising tide of scams that cross organisational boundaries:

"Criminals are collaborating, and the banking industry needs to do the same. Fraud moves across institutions and channels, but defences still operate in silos. The solution is already proven. Network-level collaboration, as we've seen in Australia, can dramatically improve scam detection without adding friction for customers. The UK finance sector must now work together to implement solutions that improve the detection of social engineering, mule activity, and the abuse of faster payments."

The report and Frost's comments underline that while financial institutions have boosted investments in stopping unauthorised fraud, losses from scams involving customer manipulation remain a significant challenge. APP fraud, largely originating through online platforms and telecommunications networks, continues to climb even as mandatory reimbursement rules and public awareness campaigns are being implemented.

The data also highlights that public and private sector collaboration-specifically sharing intelligence and joining up fraud detection efforts-could help to address the underlying issues enabling criminals to exploit gaps between banking, technology, and regulatory systems.