Expert Witness Journal Issue 65 February 2026 - Flipbook - Page 20
Report Fraud launches
by City of London Police
The City of London Police, the national lead force
for fraud, recently announced the full public launch
of Report Fraud - a new national service designed
to transform how victims and businesses across
England, Wales and Northern Ireland report cyber
crime and fraud, and how law enforcement and
industry respond.
More than just technology, Report Fraud is the result
of one of the largest transformation programmes
ever undertaken by the City of London Police. Built
from the ground up around the victim journey, it
brings together the reporting of both cyber crime
and fraud in one place for the 昀椀rst time, making
it quicker, clearer and more supportive for people
and businesses to come forward - and ensuring that
every report counts, helping to protect others.
Cyber crime and fraud are now the most common
crime in the UK, accounting for around 50 per cent
of all o昀昀ences and costing the economy billions of
pounds each year. Cyber-enabled crime and fraud
continues to grow in both scale and sophistication,
targeting individuals, small businesses and major
organisations alike. Report Fraud has been
created to meet this challenge head-on, providing
a single, modern national gateway for reporting
and intelligence that will strengthen the collective
response of policing, government and the private
sector.
Pete O’Doherty, Commissioner of the City of
London Police and the Senior Responsible O昀케cer
for delivering Report Fraud, said:
Report Fraud is the most signi昀椀cant evolution of our
national capability. It provides, for the 昀椀rst time,
a single, modern national reporting, triage and
intelligence platform for both cyber crime and fraud,
enabling the City of London Police to lead policing’s
4Ps response – pursue, protect, prevent and prepare
- at a national level. Through the new service,
intelligence will be assessed and disseminated across
forces, serious and complex cases will be identi昀椀ed
for specialist investigation, and victims will be
directed into a consistent national standard of care
and support.
“
Report Fraud is a landmark step forward. The service
puts victims 昀椀rst, gives them a clear national front
door to policing, and strengthens our ability, and that
of every police force, to identify, disrupt and pursue
the criminals behind these o昀昀ences. This is not just a
new service; it is a major upgrade to the UK’s defences
against economic crime.”
Lord Hanson, Fraud Minister said:
The service also re昀氀ects the City of London Police’s
position at the heart of the UK’s 昀椀nancial centre,
with unparalleled access to industry, regulators and
international partners. This proximity enables realtime collaboration, faster disruption of criminal
networks, and a stronger collective defence of the
UK’s economic security, supported by specialist
capabilities and training delivered through the
force’s Economic and Cyber Crime Academy.
EXPERT WITNESS JOURNAL
“
Cyber crime and fraud are the crimes most likely to
a昀昀ect people in this country, yet too often victims feel
unsure where to turn or what will happen if they make
a report. These crimes cause more than 昀椀nancial loss
and often have devastating impacts on those targeted.
We see the true cost of cyber crime and fraud when
taking reports from those a昀昀ected.
18
“
Report Fraud is a critical new tool in our 昀椀ght against
the scammers. It will deliver better support for victims
while giving law enforcement the tools to investigate
fraudsters’ operations. My thanks go to the City of
London Police and all partners for their work to bring
this crucial service to life.
“
Every fraud report matters - it is the 昀椀rst line of
defence for yourself and others. Fraud can target
anyone at any time, so we will continue to step up
e昀昀orts to ensure the UK remains the hardest place for
scammers to operate.”
FEBRUARY 2026
