Fraudsters are increasingly taking over other people’s email, WhatsApp or Facebook accounts and using them to message the victim’s family and friends. According to the first annual assessment by City of London Police for Report Fraud , losses from hijacked accounts in the year to 31 March 2026 reached £6.3 million. A year earlier the figure was £1.2 million.
The number of victims who lost money rose from 226 to 2,325. There were 44,355 reports of account takeover. Of the organisations that reported cybercrime, 62% were small and medium-sized businesses. The police note that part of the increase is due to a change in reporting: Report Fraud replaced Action Fraud in January 2026.
How it works in practice
You get a message from a “friend” or your “child”: a lost phone, a new number, an urgent bill, a request for a quick transfer to a new account. The message comes from the real account of someone you know, which is why it is easy to believe.
What it means for you
- Families: parents and grandparents in Poland are frequent targets. Agree a family password that you always ask for when someone requests money.
- Children and teenagers: their gaming and messaging accounts are also hijacked. Help them switch on two-step verification.
- Businesses: an employee’s hijacked mailbox can be used to send a client an invoice with a different account number.
Editorial comment
The best protection is simple and free: call a known number before sending money. The scam works because it is fast and relies on trust. A minute’s conversation is enough to stop it.
What to do
- Turn on two-step verification for your email, WhatsApp, Facebook and bank.
- Always confirm a request for money by phone, on a number you already know.
- Never pay into a new account given in a message.
- Forward suspicious texts to 7726 and report fraud at reportfraud.police.uk.
Source: City of London Police annual assessment for Report Fraud, reported by The Record (4 September 2026).
Sources & documents
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