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Sign up nowRise in criminals opening mobile and savings accounts in victims’ name
Discover the key steps to protect yourself as identity fraud evolves
Identity fraud is on the rise, with almost a quarter of a million cases recorded by fraud prevention database Cifas in 2024 — up 5% on the previous year.
While bank accounts remain the most common target, fraudsters are increasingly turning to mobile phone contracts, online shopping profiles and even savings accounts. These can be just as lucrative, offering high-value products or easy ways to launder money.
As fraudsters change tactics, so must consumers. Here, Which? explores the latest threats and outlines what you can do to stay safe.
Why fraudsters are targeting a new type of account
Mobile phone contracts often include handsets worth over £1,000, while hijacked online shopping accounts can be used to buy similarly high-value items or reroute deliveries.
Cifas recorded surging levels of identity fraud on telecoms products, plus a steep increase in takeovers of victims’ online shopping accounts
Savings accounts can be extremely useful for money laundering. And, while fraud on savings accounts is less common, credit reference agency Experian noted that it had increased in 2024.
‘I discovered two savings accounts opened in my name’
Steve is an expert at Featurespace, a financial crime prevention firm recently acquired by Visa. He’s worked in fraud prevention for the past two decades and is very cautious with his personal details. But earlier this year, he discovered that two savings accounts had been set up in his name.
One provider told him the account had been used for money muling (he’s asked us not to name the two banks involved while they work to tighten their processes).
The accounts were exposed when he received unexpected bank letters in the post. In both cases, the fraudster(s) had applied using his name and home address but changed the other contact details so most notifications relating to the accounts went to them, not Steve.
Both accounts were shut down and a ‘victim of impersonation’ marker was placed on the Cifas fraud database on Steve’s behalf, which should make it harder for other fraudulent applications to succeed.
Both providers advised Steve to check his credit report regularly for any further signs of fraud – something Steve already routinely did before becoming a victim of fraud.
However, Steve told us he’s worried there may be other fraudulent accounts opened in his name with other providers that he isn’t aware of. He told us: ‘I wasn’t aware that savings accounts typically won’t show up in the account section or in hard search on a credit report.’
The banks had done a soft search as part of their identity checks – but Steve spotted this much later, after the fraud was uncovered. This case highlights the importance of thoroughly checking all searches on your credit report to spot anything unusual.
Mobile phone identity fraud jumps 87% in a year
ID fraud against telecoms providers was the big story last year. Impersonations rose by 73% for the industry as a whole, while impersonations to obtain mobile phone products soared by 87%.
This trend is only too familiar for Elaine, from London. She first became aware of a problem in 2023, when she received a letter from Virgin Mobile about an overdue payment. There was just one problem – she’d never been a Virgin Mobile customer.
Over the coming weeks, she received more payment demands and became increasingly desperate as she tried to report the account as fraudulent. She later learned the latest iPhone had been dispatched as part of the contract – but she’d never received it.
During one call with Virgin, a representative repeatedly asked Elaine for her password, which she felt was a pointed attempt to try and trip her up, as if she really had taken out the contract herself. On another call, she was told that members of the fraud team had not believed her story.
Exasperated, she asked what evidence Virgin had that she took delivery of the iPhone, and was told it had a photo of the phone being delivered to her front door. She asked the colour of the front door and was told it was white. However, Elaine had painted her door green the previous year and believes the fraudsters may have obtained an old picture of her door from Google Maps. Virgin then accepted that she’d been a victim of identity fraud and wrote off the debt.
Virgin Media, which no longer provides mobile services, said that while the door’s change of colour had been helpful in resolving the case, it was not the only way of establishing Elaine’s innocence. It told us that if the door had been the same colour as in the image, investigations would have continued.
Virgin Media said: ‘Virgin Mobile ceased operations in 2023, making it difficult to fully investigate this case more than two years after it was resolved. We can however confirm that we carried out a full investigation and, once fraudulent activity was found to have occurred, the account was swiftly closed with no charges applied and [Elaine’s] credit file updated.
‘We work hard to tackle fraud and will always work closely with individuals who report such activity to investigate what happened and, where required, ensure corrective action is taken.’
Although it’s unclear how Elaine’s identity was compromised in this specific case, Cifas highlights that a common tactic involves scam calls to victims offering phone upgrades or discounts on new handsets. The victim’s personal details can then be used to make a fraudulent application.
Online account takeovers surge
Account takeover is a closely linked type of fraud in which victims’ identities are also stolen and misused, with previously genuine accounts seized by scammers who then abuse them for financial gain. More than 74,000 cases were filed with Cifas in 2024, which it describes as an ‘unprecedented 76% increase’ from 2023.
Here too, mobile phones are an attractive proposition for criminals: 48% of all cases related to mobile phone accounts. Cases involving fraudulent upgrades of a mobile phone on an existing contract nearly doubled, rising by 96%.
Takeovers of online shopping accounts also represent a high proportion of cases. Key tactics employed by criminals include changing consumers’ details on accounts or diverting orders to alternative addresses.
In July, we reported how an unfortunate Amazon customer lost £650 when a fraudster went on a spending spree with his profile. A £90 power tool and £130 wardrobe were among the purchases made on the site using his linked debit card. He was later reimbursed by his bank.
5 ways to protect yourself from identity fraud
Adopting certain habits will make life harder for fraudsters:
- Check credit reports regularly: Scrutinise accounts, hard and soft searches on your report. If a soft search reveals an ID check by a firm you don't use, query it. Also, check with the main credit reference agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion), as not every lender shares information with all of them.
- Strengthen your passwords: Creating complex, unique passwords for every account – such as a passphrase or a random string of numbers, letters, and symbols – and use a password manager to securely generate and remember them.
- Be sceptical: Whenever you're asked for personal, financial, or banking details, ask yourself how you know the request is genuine, and if in doubt, stop the contact. Wait five minutes to clear your head, and then speak to the organisation directly using a trusted contact number to verify what you've been told. You can find financial firms' details on the FCA register.
- Keep tabs on your post: Letters about unrecognised accounts should never be ignored – always query them. If you move home, set up a mail redirect and update your address on all accounts before the redirect expires.
- Contact your bank: If you think you've been a victim of fraud, contact your bank immediately and report the matter to Action Fraud (actionfraud.police.uk) in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, or call Police Scotland on 101.
