Revolut, the global financial super app with more than 2.3 million customers in Ireland, has today announced the launch of a new free in-app course designed to teach people about scams, and empower them with tools and techniques to help keep their money safe.
Rising risk of fraud
- Recent research by telecoms regulator ComReg, indicates that in 2022 alone in Ireland there were:
- Approximately 365,000 cases of fraud as result of scam calls and texts, (or 1,000 cases a day)
- Up to 89 million annoying/irritating communications and 31 million distressing communications
- Over 5,000 businesses that were the victim of fraud after receiving scam calls and texts 3
Overall, ComReg estimated that the total quantifiable harm to Ireland’s society arising from nuisance communications is conservatively estimated at over €300 million per annum.
Now, new research commissioned by Revout and undertaken by Dynata has revealed that 64% of consumers have noticed a rise in online fraud and scams in the past 12 months, with 46% admitting to personally experiencing fraud, and 47% knowing someone else who has in the past year.
The Dynata study of 1,000 Irish adults also showed that when asked about the channels or environment where they felt most vulnerable, people in Ireland pointed out mainly fraudulent SMS (65%), phone calls (61%), online shopping (46%) and fake adverts on social media sites (39%). On the other hand, dating apps and websites were only pointed out as the main source of concern for 4% of the respondents.
Consumers need more education to combat scams
Despite the ubiquity of fraud, consumers indicated that more education would help them prevent and protect themselves from scams and fraud.
According to Revolut’s Dynata research, 1 in 10 respondents said they did not know of the methods individuals can use to protect themselves against scams.
6% said they would not be able to spot a scam generally, while 67% said they were only somewhat confident they would be able to detect a fraud. Only 28% – less than a third – said they were extremely confident that they could spot a scam.
Also, 12% said they could not spot a fake ad on social media, with 65% saying they were somewhat confident they could do so. Only 24% – less than a quarter – said they were extremely confident that they would be able to do so.
Revolut’s research also showed that 14% of people say they would not know what to do if they fell victim to a scam, with a further 61% saying they would need to take time to research what to do. Only a quarter – 25% – said they knew the immediate steps they should take if they fall victim to a scam.
Respondents also said that the entities which should be held most accountable for scams were “social media companies who do not have the right systems in place to prevent fraud and scams from occurring on their platforms” (59%) and “telephone companies for not stopping fake callers and spoofed telephone calls” (50%).
However 98% of respondents said they felt that the right education would help them feel more prepared to avoid or deal with scams.
On the basis of these findings, Revolut is taking a novel approach to raising its customers’ awareness of scams and helping defend themselves against fraudsters, with the launch of its new course.
The course will include five lessons: an introduction to fraud, purchase scams, investment scams, impersonation scams, and account takeover fraud, and has been developed by Revolut’s in-house fraud experts, and covers the most prevalent types of fraud.
Each lesson will include materials explaining the different types of fraud, how customers can protect themselves, and share examples of how these scams can take place, drawing on real-life examples. Customers can then test what they have learnt, completing the lesson.
The course is free, and can be accessed in the Revolut app* by heading to Home > Hub > Learn.
Aaron Elliott-Gross, Head of Fraud and Financial Crime at Revolut, said: “Through the launch of our new in-app course on fraud, we aim to use education to empower our customers to feel more aware, more in control and better armed for action to spot criminals when they come across them online, on social media or over the phone.”
Revolut invests heavily to protect customers, with more than a third of our workforce working in a financial crime related role. The bank analyses every one of the 500m transactions its customers make every month for signs of fraud, and when its fraud model detects a scam risk, it intervenes and warns the customer.”
Aaron went on to say: “Customers also play a vital role in protecting themselves from scams, and our new Fraud Learn course aims to help them spot a scam when they might be experiencing one. If you are unsure, and you see one of our warnings; heed them and don’t complete the transfer.”
