Every minute, nearly eight people in the UK lose money to fraud – a crime that has surged past the 4 million mark in a single year, with criminals now using artificial intelligence to mimic voices and even marry their victims to keep stealing.
According to an annual report by the banking trade body UK Finance, more than 4 million cases of financial fraud were reported last year, an increase of over 1 million in just two years. Almost £1.3bn was stolen by scammers in 2025 alone.
“Four million UK fraud cases last year, with £1.3bn stolen, as criminals use AI and marriage to scam victims.”
Banks described the scale of the problem as “a national security threat”, given the impact on victims and the huge sums taken by organised criminals. The trade body said the crisis could only be tackled if tech companies stepped up monitoring and security of their platforms.
Fraudsters are using fake profiles on social media and dating sites to groom victims who believe they are in a loving relationship. UK Finance said examples included a fraudster marrying a victim to continue stealing money.
“The impact goes beyond financial loss; it can cause huge emotional harm, leaving victims burdened by guilt and shame, which is why we must tackle the problem at its source to protect consumers,” said Paul Davis, head of economic crime at Barclays.
Kirsty Guest, a florist from North Yorkshire, was scammed out of £80,000 after meeting a man on a dating app who called himself Patrick. The relationship developed over months, but was based on a lie – “Patrick” used photos of another innocent man. After claiming he had been in an accident on a work trip, he tricked Kirsty into sending thousands of pounds.
“[Fraudsters] are professional and they are making massive volumes of money,” she told the BBC in May. “They’re intelligent in what they’re doing.”
Banks say criminals are deploying AI to mimic the voices of celebrities and even victims’ family and friends, enabling them to carry out fraud at greater scale. As a result, people are more susceptible – often at a vulnerable moment, even if they do not consider themselves vulnerable.
Julie Osgood, 60, recently told the BBC that the first four men matched with her on a dating site were all potential fraudsters. She spotted the problem before being tricked, but many thousands of others were not so lucky.
Experts believe the majority of scams go unreported, meaning the true scale of the epidemic is likely far worse.