More than 1 billion scam text messages have now been blocked by Virgin Media O2 from reaching customers’ phones, marking a significant milestone in the business’ fight against fraud.
The telecoms company uses threat detection technology to prevent malicious messages from being delivered on its network. It also analyses reports from customers – who’re able to share suspicious messages for free on 7726 – to monitor trends and improve scam message detection.
In figures which reveal the alarming number of messages fraudsters are trying to send every day, this year alone, more than 600 million scam messages have been stopped in their tracks by O2, equivalent to more than 1,300 a minute.
Swerve the Scammers
Through its Swerve the Scammers campaign, Virgin Media O2 continues to invest in fraud prevention and awareness. This includes rolling out AI scam call detection for free to its customers, which is now flagging more than 50 million suspicious calls every month. The operator is also collaborating with cross-sector partners through initiatives like Stop Scams UK.
Working together with other telecoms, banking, and major tech companies, Virgin Media O2 is fighting fraud through data-sharing agreements and developing new technologies to disrupt criminal networks. It has also recently launched ‘Scam School’ sessions across the UK, offering free, in-person fraud awareness training workshops for people with low digital confidence.
Murray Mackenzie, Director of Fraud Prevention at Virgin Media O2, said: “That we’ve had to intervene to block 1 billion scam texts shows the scale of the organised crime gangs we’re up against.
“Scammers are relentlessly targeting Brits and, despite the investments we’re making to stay one step ahead, sadly fraud is the biggest crime in the UK.
“We must send a clear message that fraud is not a crime without consequence. Government must use its forthcoming Fraud Strategy to empower law enforcement by giving them the tools and resources needed to show fraud doesn’t pay and bring these criminals to justice.”
Crime without consequence
With fraud now accounting for over 40% of all crime in the UK – 4.1 million instances at an estimate cost of £6.8 billion each year – Virgin Media O2 is urging the government to put law enforcement at the heart of its new government Fraud Strategy which is due to be launched this year.
Despite the business investing millions in counter fraud measures telecoms company customers are continuously targeted. Fraudsters often attempt to steal high value phones or access customer data which they then use to perpetrate further fraud elsewhere.
With fewer than 4,000 prosecutions in 2024, Virgin Media O2 argues fraudsters can continue to commit crime without consequence because police forces are not given enough power and resources to counter professional gangs.
It’s calling for urgent action from government to make fraud a strategic priority through creating a dedicated, centralised national policing agency to handle all fraud investigations. This would replace the current fragmented system whereby the 43 individual police forces are currently responsible for most investigations.
This need for further centralisation was echoed in a recent report from the leading policing think tank the Police Foundation, entitled “A ‘Victimless’ Crime? Why fraud policing needs a re-design”. It described the current structure as “built for a different era” with many in the police lacking the resources or skills needed for this cross-border crime.
Alongside creating a Crime Prevention Agency charged with taking the national and international action necessary to prevent fraud and cybercrime, the report calls for a new National Anti-Fraud Data centre to be established with private companies legally required to share relevant data and a new national strategy to recruit and upskill investigators.
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