Despite growing awareness of cyber-crime and cyber-security, credit card fraud is on the rise in Australia with 19 per cent of Australians reporting they have experienced it, the third highest incidence in the world behind the US and Canada.
According to the 2016 Norton Cyber Security Insights Report, 13 per cent of Australians reported experiencing credit card fraud in 2015, while this jumped 6 per cent in 2016.
In 2016, 689 million people experienced cybercrime across 21 countries, with cybercrime victims spending $126 billion dealing with cybercrime.
The report found that while hackers were honing their skills, consumers were still somewhat complacent, continuing unsafe behaviours such as sharing passwords, opening unsolicited emails and using unprotected wifi.
According to recent analysis by payments firm, ACI Worldwide, the average price of an attempted fraud transaction in 2016 was $220.
Erika Dietrich, ACI’s global director of payments management, said that fraudsters buy popular, branded merchandise that they can quickly turn around and sell on the black market at a discount.
“I think the products that they buy are really driven by what is going on in the marketplace,” she says.
Here are the top 8 items most frequently purchased with stolen credit card details:
- Activity trackers eg. FitBit Charge
- Smartphones and tablets eg. Apple iPhones, Apple iPads
- Makeup
- Coffee makers
- Slippers eg. UGG Classic Slipper
- Gym shoes eg. Nike Air Jordan
- Vacuum cleaners eg. Dyson, Shark Navigator
- Electric toothbrushes