The Riksbank, Sweden's central bank, reported a significant increase in "social engineering" frauds, which rose from 35,057 to 47,466, and a 44% increase in card frauds between 2022 and 2023. This has led to a rapid shift from cash to card and online currency, as it is perceived to be more secure. However, organized crime groups, often based in Spain, have adapted to this change and are now targeting victims' cash online, posing a new threat to the security of financial transactions.
Swedes have largely moved away from using cash, with cash transactions accounting for less than 1.5% of GDP, a significant decrease from over 50% since 2001. The use of cards and mobile phones for payments has become increasingly common, with the BankID, a secure code linked to an official ID, being a widely used method for making payments and signing contracts. The BankID, which is used by over 94% of Swedes, is considered highly secure and is often used with fingerprint or facial recognition.
Another popular payment method in Sweden is Swish, an app launched in 2012 with the support of major banks in the country. Swish has facilitated over one billion payments and is used by more than 8.5 million consumers, allowing them to send money to friends or pay businesses using QR codes.
However, the rise in online fraud and digital crimes has resulted in significant financial losses, with organised gangs stealing £89m (SEK 1.2bn) in 2023, double the amount lost in 2021. These criminals often target the personal ID code used by most Swedish citizens, BankID, to gain access to and empty accounts.
#RiksbankFrauds #CashToCardShift #OnlineCurrencySecurity #SwedishPaymentMethods #BankIDSecurity #SwishAppPayments #DigitalFraudThreat #OrganizedCrimeGroups #FinancialTransactionSecurity #SwedishFinancialSecurity
No comments:
Post a Comment