How university professors are looking to tackle fraud across the globe
Fraud on a global scale
Fraud and scams have affected an estimated 2 billion people worldwide, causing over US$1 trillion in losses according to the Global Anti-Scam Alliance. In England and Wales, fraud is the most common crime, accounting for 45% of all offences, with the Home Office estimating that 70% has an international element.
It is in this context that the UK government has been leading the way in trying to mobilise not just a UK response, but a global one too.
Taking international action
On the 16 and 17 March, over 1000 delegates from around the world will meet at the UN in Vienna at the .
The summit is the culmination of several years' work which academics from or linked to the Centre for Cybercrime and Economic Crime at the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú have been central to. The UNODC has organised expert group meetings on ‘Organized Fraud’, a ‘Legislative Guide on Combating Fraud’, another on ‘Effective Communication Practices for Fraud Prevention’ and also a group on ‘Public-Private Partnerships in Tackling Fraud.’
The University's role in global fraud research
Professor Mark Button (Co-Director of the Centre for Cybercrime and Economic Crime) was a member of three of these Expert Groups.
Dr Branislav Hock (Associate Professor in Economic Crime and Compliance) was the lead drafter of the UNODC Legislative Guide on Combating Fraud - a flagship publication sitting at the highest normative tier of UNODC’s technical assistance work, which will serve as the primary reference for fraud legislators across all 193 states parties to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.
Former Centre PhD student, Dr Michael Skidmore (now Head of Serious Crime Research at the Police Foundation) was the Expert Consultant on two of the other reports.
As the Director of the Centre for Cybercrime and Economic Crime at the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, his focus lies in counter fraud and related issues.
Having conducted research for bodies including the Home Office and National Fraud Authority, Professor Button will be joining over 1000 delegates at the two day summit held in Vienna.
Next steps in research
These and many other developments will be discussed at the Global Summit to better develop strategies to deal with this problem. Professor Button will be attending the summit and leading on side events focused on how better to prevent fraud against older adults and an INTERPOL-led event on understanding the harm of fraud to victims and society.
Fraud is a global problem and staff at the Centre for Cybercrime and Economic Crime constitute one of the largest and leading groups of economic crime scholars researching this problem.
