A group of organisations that protect the interests of online users have written a letter to Prime Minister Liz Truss asking for strengthened online fraud protections.

Which?, alongside MoneySavingExpert.com, UK Finance and others, has asked the government to commit resources to tackling fraud via the upcoming Online Safety Bill.

Co-signed by a coalition of consumer groups, charities, and financial services industry bodies, the letter comes at a time when fraud is the widest reported crime in the UK, costing households an estimated £2 billion a year.

Back in March, under the previous Conservative government led by Boris Johnson, a consultation was launched regarding reforms to its Online Safety Bill.

At the time, the UK Government said it was looking to clamp down on fraud, and changes were suggested to combat the growing threat of scam advertising and fraud online.

The coalition said it hopes that the government will commit to progressing the Online Safety Bill as soon as possible.

In the letter, the group said: “The unrelenting scale of harm caused by online fraud – through both user generated content and scam advertising – and the rate at which the problem is increasing, means that consumers cannot afford to wait for these vital protections.

“Further delays to the Bill will result in the continued perpetuation of online fraud, costing people – many of who are already struggling with the cost of living crisis – dearly, devastating their lives and finances beyond repair.”

According to fraud reporting centre Action Fraud, online fraud has now become a substantial issue in the UK. Victims reported total losses of £1.7bn to scams over the last 12 months, equivalent to almost £200,000 every hour.

Previously, data collected by Which? estimated that the cumulative cost of online fraud to the wellbeing of UK citizens is £7.2bn.

In June this year, UK Finance released its fraud report covering 2021 which indicated that a total of more than £1.3bn was stolen through fraud and scams in 2021.

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Scam ads were not originally included in the Online Safety Bill, however, in March the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport announced that this would change.

The organisations continued: “The Government, under your leadership, must commit to finding the quickest and most effective solution to shield UK citizens from becoming victims of fraud – ideally by championing this element in the Online Safety Bill through Parliament as soon as possible.

“This Government has a unique opportunity to make the internet a safer place for British consumers and to not simply kick this problem down the road.”

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