Christmas set to be the most fraudulent on record

Barclays bank are warning shoppers to be extra cautious when buying gifts online after new data revealed that this Christmas looks set to be the most fraudulent since records began.

The latest research from Barclays has revealed the true cost of online scams over the festive period with the average victim losing £893 to scammers – twice the average Christmas budget for presents, food, drink & entertainment for the average family.

This figures could equate to £1.3bn lost to fraud throughout the UK. Just over a quarter of all online scams happen over the Christmas period.

The research also found that almost four in ten online shoppers admit they either don’t know, or aren’t sure, how to identify a secure website when shopping online and just 6 in ten said they feel confident about their online security around the Christmas period.