Study Reveals UK Is the Third Country More at Risk of Credit Card Fraud

Ireland, France, and the UK are most at risk of credit card fraud in the top three countries. Ireland and Greece are the countries with the highest percentages of increase in cybercrime between 2002 and 2018. Discover tips on how to prevent credit card fraud and stay safe while paying online.

From better hygiene to versatility and higher safety from theft, it is well known that using credit cards over cash has its advantages. However, using cards instead of cash has its disadvantages, too, like the possibility of becoming a victim of cybercrime and other types of fraud.

To give visibility to some of these issues, Merchant Machine conducted a study which looks at the countries most at risk of credit card frauds by analysing different metrics, including the Google search volume of words related to cybercrime, the number and value of frauds in each country and the percentage increase in frauds from 2002 to 2018. You can view the full study here.

The countries most at risk of cybercrime

Ireland is the European country most at risk of cybercrime, with a Fraud Risk Index of 7.44 and a fraud value of €7,949 per 1,000 inhabitants in 2018. The search volume for keywords relating to cybercrime is also high, resulting in an average of 2,520 searches per month over the past year, as seen on the table in the end.

With cash usage in the UK predicted to be 0% by the end of 2026, it’s not unusual to see the UK ranking third amongst the countries most at risk of cybercrimes, with a Fraud Risk Index of 6.82 highest fraud value per 1,000 inhabitants (10,414). Ireland and Greece are the countries with the highest growth in cybercrime.

The study also analyses the percentage of growth in fraud between 2002 and 2018. Ireland is still on top of the ranking, showing a percentage increase of 22,522% over those 16 years.

Although France ranks second amongst the countries most at risk of cybercrime, this ranking is replaced by Greece, which shows an incredibly high percentage increase in frauds of 22,372%. Luxembourg ranks third, with a fraud value of €5,919 per 1,000 inhabitants, an average of 40 frauds per 1,000 inhabitants, and an increase in frauds of 10,344% between 2002 and 2018.

Ian Wright, CEO and founder of Merchant Machine, comments: ‘Although using credit cards is generally safer than using cash for money transactions, there are a few precautions card users should be aware of when using credit cards or managing e-money.’

‘A good way to protect yourself from fraud is to secure all your online and offline data by hiding passwords and shredding documents containing confidential information. Checking your statements is another good way to keep track of each payment and identify any possible scams.’