A fraud report from Experian revealed that the majority of attacks on mortgage products continues to come from first party fraudsters or individuals misrepresenting their own circumstances.
Experian also reported an increase in the number of properties where the use of the property is misdeclared, such as applying for a regular residential mortgage on a buy-to-let property.
Meanwhile, overall, the mortgage industry saw a 23% jump in attempted fraud rates between April and June 2012, where it fell 3% against last year across other financial services sectors.
Global information company Experian reported out of 10,000 mortgages, 39 were identified as fraudulent between April and June 2012, up from 32 over the same period in 2011.
However, savings accounts saw a 109% uplift in fraud rates with 13 fraudulent applications in every 10,000 detected, up from six in every 10,000 a year ago. This kind of identity fraud is often perpetrated for money laundering or sleeper fraud purposes, said Experian.
Nick Mothershaw, director of identity & fraud services at Experian in the UK and Ireland, said: “Over the course of the last year, we have seen mortgages continue to be targeted at a high rate, with more people trying to misrepresent their personal, employment and credit information on applications to get properties out of their reach.
“It is vital that finance providers share comprehensive and timely information about finance applications and known frauds to help combat this common threat to the industry.”
