Borders MP Michael Moore has expressed his concern about the rise of payment fraud following the latest figures on card fraud published by APACS, the UK payment association.

The figures reveal that payment fraud losses in 2008 amounted to £609.9m, a 14 per cent increase on the 2007 figures. The report also reveals that the two main areas of fraud relate to transactions which are not protected by chip and PIN: specifically internet, phone and mail-order fraud, and fraud abroad.

Mr Moore said:
"These figures are disappointing and show that more work is needed to stay ahead of fraudsters. The figures show that, over the last year, card identity theft has soared by over a third. Chip and PIN and secure online payment systems are very useful tools in combating fraud, but they are still not widespread and there are obvious difficulties for long distance payments."

"Technology on its own, however, is not enough to beat criminals. Unfortunately, the economic downturn is likely to lead to an increase in card fraud and it remains as important as ever to be alert and vigilant when giving out personal information."