Notts Council working hard to protect Ashfield and Mansfield taxpayers’ money from cybercrime and fraudsters

Council staff are working to ensure money from taxpayers in towns like Kirkby, Sutton and Mansfield is protected from sophisticated attacks by cybercriminals as the ongoing fight against fraud continues.

In September, it was revealed the council had thwarted more than 500 attempts at fraud, totalling £4 million, since 2016.

The most significant case took place in 2019-20 when a failed attempt was made to steal £2.2m by using false bank details for a major council supplier.

Fraudsters have also used the coronavirus pandemic to take advantage of the public sector increasing urgency to deliver services and meet demand.

Common fraud attempts in the public sector include changes to bank details and false payment requests, deprivation of assets and misuse of direct payments.

Now as part of fraud awareness week, the council has moved to reassure residents it takes a zero-tolerance approach to attempts at fraud and will use the full force of the law against fraudsters.

‘Illegal’

Coun Philip Owen, council governance and ethics committee chairman, said: “Fraud is illegal and diverts taxpayers’ money away from the provision of essential local public services.

“We’re aware fraudsters are exploiting the spread of coronavirus to facilitate various types of fraud and cybercrime for their own gain.

“And despite the success of the council over the last five years, we can’t rest on our laurels – attempts at fraud happen every day in every part of the UK.

“Unscrupulous fraudsters will unfortunately always be a risk, but our excellent specialist staff are ready and waiting to stop any attempts to steal taxpayers’ money from the council.”

The council is also ensuring its staff and management teams are following simple measures to help prevent fraud and ultimately protect public money.

Staff are encouraged to complete a fraud awareness e-learning training course, which includes advice from Nottinghamshire Police to be vigilant against fraud, and are also receiving the latest guidance to prevent fraud at work and at home.

In addition, the council has put together some information on avoiding fraud at bit.ly/3kLgcVX

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