Istock.com / shuttEr2u News Fraud and cyber crime now among most common crimes, new report finds Theres never been a more urgent time for organisations to be alert to external and internal fraud, according to the latest Fraudscape report from Cifas. The not-for-profit company which works to protect businesses, charities, public bodies and individuals from financial crime has found that almost one in every two offences is either a fraud or a cyber crime. They now rival car crime, robbery and burglary as the highest volume crimes of the 21st century. Cifas is calling on the government, law enforcement, businesses and consumers to work together to combat this ever-growing threat. This years Fraudscape report published last month has, for the first time, brought incidents recorded in the National Fraud Database and the Internal Fraud Database into a single document. Cifas member organisations which include banks, insurance brokers and technology companies contributed more than 325,000 cases of fraud to the national picture, the highest number ever recorded to the databases. In 2016: Overall recorded fraud increased by 1.2 per cent Identity fraud reached the highest levels ever recorded, with almost 173,000 cases reported by Cifas member organisations Fraudsters continued to focus on online applications, with 88 per cent of identity frauds being internet-enabled Facility takeover fraud increased by 45 per cent There was an increase in mule activity, where genuine account holders are complicit in allowing criminals to transfer illegally obtained money between bank accounts The most common internal fraud was simply staff stealing cash Cifas has urged the next government to make tackling fraud a priority including making it a strategic priority for UK policing, bringing fraud awareness and education into the national curriculum, and reviewing the sentencing guidelines for fraud. holidaymakers fined after car-parking firm dumps cars were discovered in a muddy field. They had been left unattended, with their keys nearby, by five firms that had promised customers offsite parking near the airport. The holidaymakers reportedly paid more than 150 for their cars to be placed in a secure facility. Heathrow Airport and Hillingdon Council are investigating. Our trading standards team has launched an investigation and will be contacting the people who have received the parking tickets in due course, said a spokesperson for Hillingdon Council. Istock.com / saNNEBErg Hundreds of people have received fines after the airport parking firms they paid to look after their vehicles dumped them in a council car park near Heathrow. The news comes after last years widely reported problems at Gatwick, where 1,000 vehicles ICO issues highestever fine for nuisance calls A company behind 99.5 million nuisance calls has been fined a record 400,000 by the Information Commissioners Office (ICO). Keurboom Communications has been issued with the ICOs highestever nuisance-calls fine after more than 1,000 people complained about automated calls. The calls, made over an 18-month period, related to a wide range of subjects, including traffic accident claims and PPI compensation. Some people received repeat calls, sometimes on the same day and during unsociable hours. The company also hid its identity, making it harder for people to complain. Companies can only make automated marketing calls to people if they have their specific consent. Keurboom did not have consent, so was in breach of the law. Steve Eckerlsey, head of enforcement at the ICO, said: Keurboom showed scant regard for the rules, causing upset and distress to people unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of one its 100 million calls. The unprecedented scale of its campaign and Keurbooms failure to cooperate with our investigation has resulted in the largest fine issued by the Information Commissioner for nuisance calls. During the investigation, the ICO issued seven information notices ordering the company which is registered in Dunstable, Bedfordshire to provide information to the regulator. When it failed to comply, Keurboom Communications and its director, Gregory Rudd, were prosecuted and fined at Luton Magistrates Court in April 2016. Following the ICOs investigation, Keurboom Communications has been placed in voluntary liquidation. The ICO is committed to recovering the fine by working with the liquidator and insolvency practitioners. The ICOs powers will be strengthened when the government introduces a law allowing it to fine the company directors behind nuisance-call firms. It is hoped that making directors responsible means they will be unable to avoid fines by putting their firm into liquidation. MEPs have voted to change the rules to ensure that buyers of goods or services from another EU country are treated like local customers. The draft law defines specific situations in which geo-blocking will not be allowed. This means that online sellers will not be able to discriminate against consumers elsewhere in the EU when it comes to general terms and conditions, including price, or on the basis of their nationality, place of residence or temporary location. Free-range and locally sourced bacon claims land father and son in court Two Nottinghamshire businessmen who ran a company called Barn Bacon have pleaded guilty to falsely claiming that its EU-sourced bacon products were free-range and locally produced. William Smith pleaded guilty to five fraud offences. He received a 19-month sentence, suspended for two years, and 180 hours unpaid work, and has to pay 15,000 costs. His father, Andrew Smith, pleaded guilty to one fraud offence and was given a two-year sentence, suspended for two years and 200 hours unpaid work, with costs of 5,000. The case was heard at Nottingham Crown Court. The misleading bacon products were sold at Nottinghamshire markets, as well as at events such as Northamptons Shambala Festival and Cambridgeshires Secret Garden Party both of which insist traders sell homeproduced and free-range products. Claudine White, Nottinghamshire trading standards manager, said: This companys blatant false claims have allowed it to sell its bacon products at a higher price than would be expected for standard products, and gave it access to events to the detriment of legitimate traders.