In the year 2019/2020 the London Police recorded 27,187 reports of cybercrime, comprising

• 13,271 reports of hacking social media and email
• 7,095 reports of computer viruses / malware
• 3,605reports of personal hacking

These reports amount to a reported loss of £5.4 million.

Perhaps surprisingly, the people at highest risk of being scammed were 20-29 year olds.

The most common methods most used by the cyber criminals were:-

1. Phishing emails – messages that claim from be from an authority of some kind, but seek to get your personal information e.g. login and password, credit card details etc.
2. Weak passwords i.e. ones that can be guessed or are a word in the dictionary
3. Weak security that allows attackers access for ransomware or to breach the security to steal data

The most commonly reported example of phishing was fake emails offering a TV licence renewal.

If you have any experiences with these scams do let me know, by email.