February 2, 2022

British lawmakers have said that big tech companies that run ads for scams should reimburse its victims, part of a larger move to combat online fraud in the U.K.

While banks have agreed to a voluntary code to help victims of fraud who have sufficiently protected themselves, there is still a lack of regulation on social media and other websites that victims are often lured to first, said Mel Stride, chairman of the cross-party Treasury committee.

The Treasury Committee published the findings of a report on economic crime on Wednesday, which called on the government to seriously consider requiring online platforms to help reimburse victims.

The report highlighted that TechUK said in December that Meta Platforms, Twitter and Microsoft had agreed to hire potential financial services providers to be authorized by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority, along with Google, TikTok and Amazon.

However, the report did not set a specific timetable for these changes and other major online platforms did not follow suit.

The U.K. is now a global epicentre for bank fraud, with a record 754 million pounds ($1 billion) stolen in the first six months of the year, up 30 per cent on the same period last year.

For more information, read the original story in Reuters.