UK opens Online Crime Centre to shut down scam accounts and texts

A new Online Crime Centre is set to take the fight to cyber-crime as part of the UK government’s expanded anti-fraud strategy. In a joint announcement, the UK Home Office and the National Crime Agency said the unit will combine expertise from government, intelligence agencies, the police, banks, mobile networks and major technology firms and is set to begin work in April.

The centre will identify accounts, websites and phone numbers used by cyber-criminal gangs and shut them down, with activity including blocking scam texts, freezing criminal accounts, removing scam social media accounts and disrupting operations at source. According to the UK government, cyber-enabled fraud costs the economy £14bn a year, with one in 14 adults and one in four businesses affected.

The National Crime Agency’s James Babbage described the expansion as a “step change” in the collective effort to protect the public, emphasising collaboration with partners across the public and private sectors. A new fraud victims charter will also set out response times, minimum standards of care and consistent advice on reimbursement and recovery.