Over a quarter of a billion euros in damages from spoofing

So reports the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in the report Veiligheidsmonitor 2021. The survey maps victimization and how Dutch people think about safety. CBS conducts the survey every two years on behalf of the Ministry of Justice and Security. In the last edition, more than 173,000 Dutch people aged 15 and older participated.

Purchase and sales fraud were most frequently reported

Last year, a total of 4.2 million crimes were reported where victims suffered direct financial losses. This is a sum of traditional forms of crime, such as theft and vandalism, and cybercrime (2). Total damages for both forms reached 2.5 billion euros in 2021.

Fraud involving online purchases-both purchase and sale fraud-was the most common. Of these, 1.3 million were reported. At the same time, it is a form of fraud where the damage was the lowest. In half of the reports, the damage amount was under 50 euros.

An estimated 157,000 cybercriminals committed payment fraud last year. In 82,000 cases, this involved banking fraud. A fraudster criminally tries to gain access to his victim's bank account, often through phishing (3). He then transfers money from his victim's bank account to his own account.

Here's what you need to know about spoofing

Another form of online scam that causes many victims and financial losses is spoofing. Internet criminals then call people whose personal information they hold. They often purchase this information through the dark web (4), or through criminal acquaintances close to them.

Through special software, instead of their private number appearing on the screen, the phone number of a trusted institution, such as a bank, appears. The person being called then thinks he is dealing with a bank employee. If the so-called employee then tells him that "suspicious activity" has occurred on his account and that he must act immediately, this often leads to financial damage for the victim.

Bank spoofing accounted for 261 million euros in damages

In 2021, spoofing caused 97,000 victims. The damage amount is estimated at 261 million euros. That accounts for 11 percent of the total damage from online crime. In three-quarters of the cases, the victim himself transferred money to the fraudsters. That resulted in damages of 187 million euros.

Bank spoofing, in which a scammer pretends to be a bank employee, claimed 18,000 victims. Half of the victims had financial losses of at least 4,000 euros. Total damages from bank spoofing came to 94 million euros last year. Banks compensated three-quarters of the damage, amounting to 70 million euros.

Friend-in-need fraud and help desk fraud

WhatsApp fraud (5) and other forms of friend-in-need fraud caused 73 million euros in damages. Some 26,000 Dutch people fell victim to this form of fraud. Half of them paid at least 2,000 euros to scammers posing as friends, family members, colleagues or acquaintances. 25 million euros was reimbursed by banks, credit card companies and online payment services, or refunded by suspects.

Help desk fraud (6) caused 14 million euros in financial losses in 2021. An amount of 4 million euros was compensated or refunded. Sending fake fines and fake invoices-also called Business Email Compromise (7)-accounted for 3 million euros in damages. Two thirds of this was reimbursed by financial institutions. The remaining damage of 77 million euros was caused by other forms of spoofing. About one-third (21 million euros) was compensated, 56 million euros was borne by the victims.

Number of cybercrime victims and damages on the rise

In the Cybersecurity Monitor 2021 released in July, CBS already concluded that the number of victims of cybercriminals had increased significantly over the past decade (8). The study found that young people under 25 were generally more likely to be victims. In 2021, an average of one in five young people aged 15 to 25 were victims of cybercriminals. Among those over 65, it was about one in eight (12 percent). About one-fifth of all victims (19 percent) reported the crime to the police.

Based on its own figures, the Fraude Helpdesk (9) calculated that in the first half of this year more than 21 million euros worth of damage had already been reported due to online fraud. That is over 2.5 million euros more compared to the same period a year earlier. 18,738 victims reported to the Fraude Helpdesk in the first six months of this year.

Resources

1. https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/nieuws/2022/38/2-5-miljard-euro-schade-door-criminaliteit-tegen-burgers

2. https://www.vpngids.nl/veilig-internet/cybercrime/identiteitsfraude/

3. https://www.vpngids.nl/veilig-internet/cybercrime/wat-is-phishing/

4. https://www.vpngids.nl/privacy/anoniem-browsen/wat-is-het-dark-web/

5. https://www.vpngids.nl/veilig-internet/cybercrime/whatsapp-fraude/

6. https://www.vpngids.nl/veilig-internet/cybercrime/wat-is-helpdeskfraude/

7. https://www.vpngids.nl/veilig-internet/zakelijk/business-e-mail-compromise/

8. https://www.vpngids.nl/nieuws/cbs-slachtoffers-cybercriminaliteit-fors-toegenomen/

9. https://www.vpngids.nl/nieuws/nu-al-21-miljoen-euro-schade-door-online-fraude/