Impact of cybercrime on internet users in the United Kingdom (UK) - Statistics & Facts
Although consumers in the United Kingdom (UK) have long been popular targets for cybercriminals, with the development of online services, it is becoming a much bigger threat. In the second quarter of 2023, 8,106 cybercrime incidents were registered in the country, up from around six thousand in the fourth quarter of 2022. Consumer fraud was the most reported type of fraud and cybercrime, with nearly 31 thousand incidents in the second quarter of 2023. Roughly half of the surveyed UK internet users stated having experienced impersonation fraud, while 42 percent had experienced counterfeit goods scams.
The first quarter of 2021 saw the most extensive number of breached data records in the market, approximately 15 million. Since then, the number of breached data points has significantly decreased to around 420 thousand. As of 2023, the average cost of a data breach in the UK was around 4.21 million U.S. dollars.
Consumer data breaches in the UK
One of the most common impacts of cyberattacks is a data breach. Consumer data collected by companies often becomes available to unauthorized third parties due to a hack or other type of cyberattack. To date, the most significant data breach incident in the United Kingdom is the Dixons Carphone breach in 2017-2018, when information regarding 14 million personal records and 5.6 million payment cards were leaked.The first quarter of 2021 saw the most extensive number of breached data records in the market, approximately 15 million. Since then, the number of breached data points has significantly decreased to around 420 thousand. As of 2023, the average cost of a data breach in the UK was around 4.21 million U.S. dollars.
