Nottinghamshire County Council are ensuring measures stay in place to protect taxpayers' money from fraud
Robust measures have been put in place by Nottinghamshire County Council to safeguard public money against fraudsters.
Council staff are working to ensure taxpayers’ money is protected from sophisticated attacks by cyber criminals.
In September it was revealed the council had stopped more than 500 attempts at fraud, totalling £4m, since 2016.
Philip Owen, chairman of the governance and ethics committee, said: “We’re aware that fraudsters are exploiting the spread of coronavirus to facilitate various types of fraud and cyber crime for their own gain.
“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 county council.”
Staff are encouraged to complete a fraud awareness e-learning training course and are receiving the latest guidance to prevent fraud.
The most significant case took place in 2019 to 2020 when a failed attempt was made to steal £2.2m by using false bank details for a major county council supplier.
Fraudsters have also used the covid-19 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 International Fraud Awareness Week, the county council has reassured residents it takes a zero-tolerance approach to attempts at fraud and will use the full force of the law against fraudsters.
As part of International Fraud Awareness Week, the county council is also making sure its staff and management teams are following simple measures to help prevent fraud and protect public money.
In addition, the county council has put together some useful information, links and tips in relation to common scams against the general public.
Residents access fraud awareness advice to help protect themselves and their loved ones from scams here.
