B.I.E.Blogging In England

Not for one particular policeman anyway as he faces a suspended prison sentence after defrauding a number of high street banks.

PC Jamie Hillman applied for loans or credit cards from the banks, including Northern Rock and Barclays, to fund an extra-marital affair with a female colleague from Avon and Somerset police force. In doing so he falsely claimed that he was a sergeant rather than a PC and also that he was a soldier who had been serving in Afghanistan.

At Bristol Crown Court, Hillman claimed that he was suffering from amnesia whilst committing the fraud which amounted to over 73,000. The judge in the case sympathized with Hillman to some extent, saying that he was emotionally fragile and had been brave for admitting the offences. He was given a 12-month custodial sentence which was suspended for two years.

Hillman was also ordered to do 300 hours unpaid work and there will be a confiscation hearing to determine repayments of the debt. However, he can perhaps count himself lucky that he didn t receive an immediate prison sentence for the offence. Would you have expected an immediate custodial sentence for those offences? Let me know.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2104132/Policeman-guilty-70-000-fraud-fund-affair-fellow-officer-walks-free-court.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

In what is perhaps unsurprising news, a new study has shown that consumers are more wary of the possibility of fraud when they are shopping online rather than when they conduct transactions in person.

The poll, commissioned by Accertify, the American Express fraud prevention and risk management provider, showed that two-thirds of those questioned believed that more fraud took place in online transactions than those conducted in person. It also found that almost half of those who used smartphones or web-enabled computers had encountered a fraud protection system which had delayed or stopped their transaction.

This can clearly affect shopping behaviour and many of those affected in this way said they were prepared to punish the firm responsible by moving their business over to a competitor. Mike Long, vice president at Accertify, said that there was a need for an automated fraud prevention system that could cope with emerging fraud threats and changes to businesses.

Interestingly, of those who shopped online, most placed trust in their own computer rather than their smartphone or tablet.

http://www.travolution.co.uk/articles/2012/01/24/5368/consumers-believe-fraud-more-common-online-says-study.html

An article on how the New Year will see a change in the way we pay for our goods reports on new developments such as buying through mobile phones and online shopping, which have increased apace during the last couple of years. Another development is quick response (QR) codes, which allow a consumer to scan a barcode with their camera, which then directs them to a voucher or special offer.

In amongst all the new developments aimed at consumers and their shopping experience, card-not-present fraud is identified as a live, current issue and new developments can help in this area too.

One such modification will make it possible for someone to process a transaction by checking a credit card through a webcam or a mobile camera, so it would, in effect be a card-present transaction, and works by using secure video streaming to identify and then approve the information on the credit card.

The customer would hold their card up to the camera, wait for it to initialise and then enter their card s security number to complete the purchase. It is in its early stages of development now, but will certainly take off in the coming months and should provide some reassurance to those who are concerned about providing their card details online.