Author: Thandi Skade / Source: DESTINY Magazine
Victims of credit card fraud in Gauteng lost a whopping R93,1 million in 2016, the SA Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) has revealed
While Gauteng is the most affected province when it comes to card fraud, Sabric’s latest Card Fraud report highlights how rampant the crime is becoming in other provinces too.
Other than the Western Cape – where credit card fraud losses dropped from R29,7 million in 2015 to R26,2 million last year – all provinces recorded increases in losses.
The Eastern Cape experienced the biggest increase in losses, up a staggering 148% from R3,5 million in 2015 to R8,7 million last year, followed by North West where losses increased by 127,9% from 2015 to R2,9 million.
While card fraud losses in the Northern Cape totalled just R259 875 last year, it is the province with the third-biggest increase in losses, representing a 95,7% jump from 2015.
From a national perspective, credit card fraud rose by 13% to R374,4 million, while debit card fraud increased by 3,1% to R343,5 million.
“Analysis has highlighted that criminals still prefer cash as proceeds of crime in spite of the anonymity of digital platforms. Cash withdrawals at ATMs have become prevalent in South Africa,” the report states.
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