CIFAS reports alarming rise in theft from customer accounts

Dishonest employees stealing from customer accounts are as "bad as muggers" said fraud detection company CIFAS as its latest figures show an alarming increase insider theft.

CIFAS said that during 2011 fraud committed by employees of companies rose 14.5 per cent overall when compared to 2010 figures.

However, alarmingly, the company found a staggering 41 per cent spike in the number of dishonest actions such as theft of cash from customer accounts. The main targets for these crimes are the elderly or more vulnerable, according to CIFAS.

It went on to say that many of these dishonest employees seem able to move freely between organisations and many companies unwittling employ these people because they fail to carry out proper checks into their background.

Richard Hurley of CIFAS said: "Over 30 per cent of all frauds recorded for dishonest actions are directly linked to the theft of cash from customers - with anecdotal evidence from CIFAS members showing that many of these fraudsters steal from elderly and more vulnerable account holders.

"While economic hardship as a motivation might generate a level of understanding, the heartless nature of such frauds only underlines the fact that the perpetrators' actions are as bad as muggers in the street."

However, the company noted in its latest fraud report, that levels of data theft where information is often passed on to organised crime gangs had fallen by a quarter over last year's figures.

The number of people lying to get a job such as providing a false employment record or not declaring outstanding criminal records has remained relatively stable.