It is estimated that fraud costs the UK economy around £14.4bn a year and accounts for around 45% of all crime across England and Wales, according to the Crime Survey of England and Wales 2025. Of the adults surveyed one in 14 were found to be victims of fraud.

The government’s new Fraud Strategy 2026-2029, which was launched in March, outlines plans to:

• disrupt the methods and technologies used by criminals to commit fraud;
• strengthen protection and resilience for individuals and businesses; and
• improve victim support.

The strategy includes three core pillars: disrupt, safeguard and respond.

Disrupt

Disrupting – or denying – criminals access to tools, platforms, technologies and methods used to commit fraud.

The Online Crime Centre, a key part of the ‘disrupt’ element of the strategy, started operating in April. It brings together keys authorities and intelligence agencies, such as the National Crime Agencey and UK police forces, as well as private sector partners from financial and technology backgrounds to share data, knowledge and insight to detect fraud patterns and shut down organised crime groups.

The ‘disrupt’ pillar also seeks to protect and strengthen telecommunications infrastructure by closing existing vulnerabilities in telecom networks through greater industry collaboration and enhanced regulation.

Safeguard

Building resilience, reducing vulnerability and improving protection for individuals and businesses will play a key role in safeguarding against fraud.

A “second line of defence” against fraud if ‘disrupt’ efforts fail, the ‘safeguard’ element of the strategy will:

• Expand the public awareness campaign, Stop! Think Fraud to cover a wider variety of frauds and target more businesses.
• Introduce more educational resources into schools and universities to improve fraud awareness.
• Raise awareness of existing tools which can help the public identify fraudulent emails, texts, websites and QR codes.

Respond

Improving support to victims of fraud and delivering justice.

This element focuses on improving the reporting process, making it easier to report fraud and access support, while ensuring tougher penalties for those found guilty of fraud. It includes:

• The 2026 launch of a new streamlined reporting service, Report Fraud, aims to provide better victim support and ‘swifter’ police intervention.
• The introduction of a new Fraud Victims Charter in 2027, which will outline national service standards victims can expect to receive, including response times, minimum standards of care, clear communication and advice.
• Enhancing law enforcement investigation capabilities through artificial intelligence technologies and acting on recommendations of improved law enforcement and police response.
• Improving international law enforcement collaboration.
• The introduction of judge-only trials for complex fraud cases.

To oversee delivery of the anti-fraud strategy and its aims and objectives, a Fraud Ministerial Accountability Group is being established. 

Implications for accountants

From enforcement to prevention

“The strategy signals a shift from fraud enforcement to prevention, placing greater reliance on those at key financial control points,” says Nabeel Osman, Partner at law firm Spencer West. “This raises expectations on accountants to apply heightened scrutiny, particularly in client due diligence and interrogating the commercial rationale of transactions.”

As Osman explains, the day-to-day impact will be operational – a move away from ‘tick-box compliance’ and towards active scepticism along with robust audit trails and defensible decision-making.

Importance of Know Your Customer protocols

Under the new strategy, Know Your Customer (KYC) frameworks will play a key role in fraud prevention. According to Thomas Cattee, Partner at Gherson Solicitors, accountants will need to update their KYC policies and onboarding procedures to ensure they remain fit for purpose, especially when used for digital identity verification and to help safeguard businesses from fraud.

Failure to prevent fraud

The introduction of the failure to prevent fraud offence in 2025 is likely to have the biggest impact on accountants, says Cattee. Accountants will be required to advise clients on their internal controls and assist with compliance to avoid criminal liability.

“The new offence reflects a broader shift in the regulatory landscape,” says Mike Miller, ICAEW’s Economic Crime Manager. “Rather than focusing solely on detecting and prosecuting wrongdoing after it occurs, the legislation encourages organisations to take proactive steps to understand and mitigate fraud risks before they arise.

"ICAEW has published advice to help members prepare for the UK’s new corporate offence of failure to prevent fraud, and the practical framework outlines steps organisations can take to ensure compliance.”