The latest Q3 2024 Global Call Threat Report from Hiya, which also works with broadband ISPs and mobile operators (BT, EE, O2, Virgin Media etc.) to help detect and block SPAM and fraud calls, has revealed that residents of the UK receive 4 spam calls per person each month (up from 3 spam calls last quarter) – albeit one of the lowest rates in Europe.
Overall, the latest report found that 3% of all UK calls were classified as “fraud calls” (unchanged from Q2), while 25% were “nuisance calls” (unchanged) and the remaining 72% reflected all other (normal) calls – this reflects a spam flag rate of 28% (unchanged). Generally, fewer spam/scam calls are making it past the network-level filtering systems being adopted by various phone providers, but they aren’t perfect and not everybody uses them.
The top sources of scam calls in Q3 2024 once again came from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) impersonators, which was followed by those trying to impersonate Amazon and Credit Card companies (i.e. Visa and Mastercard). Hiya also revealed that Brits are concerned about the advent of AI-generated deepfakes. In the company’s survey of more than 2,000 British citizens, some 18% said they had experienced an audio deepfake. Most commonly, the deepfake came from a fake personal call.