How does the NFIB work?
The NFIB is looking for criminals who are often known but hide the extent of their crime. To find these offenders, the NFIB needs to see the reports of fraud that can help identify them. To achieve this, a range of data sources have been identified from a number of different streams. These are:
- Reports from citizens via the Action Fraud contact centre and web reporting facility
- Confirmed fraud data from industry and the public sector, including organisations in the banking sector, insurance sector and telecommunications
- Intelligence – the NFIB will have access to a variety of intelligence sources including, but not limited to, police crime/intelligence systems
- Reports of fraud made directly to local police forces
Major data providers to the NFIB include the Office of Fair Trading, CIFAS, UK Payments, Vodafone and Royal Mail. The National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) have also agreed to facilitate the transfer of police fraud data from forces into the Police National Database (PND) and then on into the NFIB ‘hub’. This system will commence once the PND becomes fully operative.
Millions of fraud reports are being transferred to the NFIB ‘hub’, built in Gloucestershire and accessed from the City of London Police. These reports are ingested into a data warehouse and, using analytical software, studied to identify patterns in offending. NFIB analysts and police officers will assess and measure the relevant data against set criteria. Frauds identified as having viable leads are passed to a police force or other law enforcement organisation best placed to capitalise on this information.The law enforcement body is responsible for deciding how to use this information, whether it be to launch a full investigation or take some disruptive action.
The NFIB’s second major objective is to create an improved picture of the nature of fraud offending across the UK. This will enable closer working and more targeted prevention activity for police and industry over the short and long term. Outputs from the NFIB include:
- Identifying the volume and value of confirmed fraud crimes in the UK
- Identify geographical fraud hot-spots
- Map areas where specific types of fraud are occurring and to whom
- Identify reports linked to Organised Crime Groups
- Provide a national picture for law enforcement illustrating where fraud related crime occurs
The General guide to the NFIB gives more detailed information about the work on the NFIB.
