More than a third of firms report fraud increase in 2021

• by Olivia Lawlor-Blackburn
• Industry News

Eight in ten mid-sized businesses in the Midlands experienced fraud in 2021, with more than a third (39 per cent) of companies reporting an increase on the previous year, according to a new survey from accountancy and business advisory firm BDO LLP.

BDO’s Fraud Survey – which monitored fraud trends at 500 mid-sized UK firms throughout 2021 – found that more than a third (37 per cent) of firms suffered security breaches through cyber-attacks over the last 12 months.

While nearly a third (32 per cent) of frauds were externally generated, 29 per cent were committed against companies by their own employees, with more than quarter (26 per cent) involving collusion between internal and external individuals

Of those surveyed, nine in ten (92 per cent) business owners and directors in the region think their company is more exposed to fraud since 2020, while almost a quarter (21 per cent) believe their exposure has “significantly” increased. The overwhelming majority (87 per cent) said fraud risks at their business have increased as a direct result of home working.

With millions of employees continuing to work from home – often without access to workplace IT support – the threat posed by scammers remains heightened. However, businesses with employees working on-site also remain vulnerable, with considerably more than half of the firms impacted by fraud reporting that their employees had predominantly operated from the office or work premises over the last 12 months.

Read via Greater Birmingham Chambers