Cardholders warned as fraudsters step up a gear in 2007

As 2007 gets underway, a new report from Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking has found that millions of Britons are leaving themselves open to fraudsters.

The report compiles the most common ID Theft ‘sins’ and reveals those who are taking the most unnecessary risks by failing to protect themselves. The most common sin was throwing away bank or credit card statements without shredding. A worrying 40 per cent of people admitted to taking this risk, rising to 59 per cent amongst the under thirties. The second most common risk taken was using the same passwords or PINs for bank accounts and credit cards – a sin committed by 27 per cent of the population, rising to 31 per cent of under thirties.

The top five most common risks are:

Throwing personal details away without shredding: 40%
Using the same passwords or PINs for all accounts: 27%
Writing down or storing passwords or PINs on PCs or laptops: 12%
Sharing personal information in a public place: 11%
Sending bank details over unencrypted email: 5%

Patrick Muir, marketing director, the Morgan Stanley Credit Card commented: “The findings fuel concerns that Britons are not taking heed of warnings to protect themselves. There has been a lot of attention placed on the issue of ID Theft but, worryingly, many people still don’t believe it could happen to them.”

Muir continued: “Our fraud department deals with a number of cases every year and many victims do not realise they have fallen prey to fraudsters for many months. This has lengthy and far reaching consequences, so we would suggest taking out an ID Theft insurance policy to safeguard against this headache.”

Key Findings:

The young (under thirties) are least likely to notice they may have fallen victim to fraudsters; 45 per cent do not check their bank or credit card statements. Over fifties were most diligent in regularly checking statements; only 28 per cent failed to do so.

The young are also most likely to take risks such as throwing away personal information without shredding (59%), sharing PIN and password details (19%) and giving out their personal details in a public place (19%).

Around the regions, Londoners are most likely to be putting themselves at risk. Fifteen per cent have shared personal information in a public place, 25 per cent claim to use the same PINs for all their cards and nine per cent store bank account passwords on their PCs or laptops.

Morgan Stanley has compiled the following top tips for staying safe in 2007:

Always shred personal details before throwing them in the rubbish, preferably with a cross cut shredder

Do not share or record PIN and account numbers in places where others may find them

When shopping online, always check the site is secure (you will see https: on the address line of your browser)

When asked to supply personal details over the phone or email, be confident you know who you are really supplying this information to

Check your bank and credit card statements for alien transactions

When you are shopping or eating out, try and keep your card in your sight at all times so this can not be cloned

Insurance policies can be valuable in helping identify fraud early and assisting victims – some policies are not as comprehensive as they seem, so do check the small print
Morgan Stanley has developed an online ID Theft calculator to help people determine how likely they are to become a victim of ID Theft. Visit morganstanleycard.co.uk/calculator