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Mobile operator O2 (Virgin Media) has today revealed that over 1 billion scam text messages have been blocked by their network and prevented from reaching customers. The provider is now calling on the government to ensure that their forthcoming Fraud Strategy helps to tackle this by empowering law enforcement with the tools and resources needed to crackdown on the problem.
Like other broadband and mobile providers, VMO2 already uses various types of threat detection and filtering technologies to prevent malicious messages and calls from being delivered on its network (e.g. their free AI scam call detection system is flagging 50 million suspicious calls every month). It also analyses reports from customers – those who share suspicious messages for free via 7726 – to monitor trends and improve scam detection.
However, while network operators are putting in place new technologies and methods to better tackle the problem, there remains a weak spot when it comes to enforcement (tricky as a lot of the criminals often reside overseas). This is perhaps underlined by the fact that there were fewer than 4,000 prosecutions in 2024 and, as a result, VMO2 argues that “fraudsters can continue to commit crime without consequence because police forces are not given enough power and resources to counter professional gangs“.
The network operator is now calling for “urgent action from government” to make fraud a strategic priority, such as by creating a dedicated, centralised national policing agency to handle all fraud investigations. This would replace the current fragmented system, whereby the 43 individual police forces are currently responsible for most investigations.
Murray Mackenzie, Director of Fraud Prevention at Virgin Media and O2, said:
“That we’ve had to intervene to block 1 billion scam texts shows the scale of the organised crime gangs we’re up against.
Scammers are relentlessly targeting Brits and, despite the investments we’re making to stay one step ahead, sadly fraud is the biggest crime in the UK.
We must send a clear message that fraud is not a crime without consequence. Government must use its forthcoming Fraud Strategy to empower law enforcement by giving them the tools and resources needed to show fraud doesn’t pay and bring these criminals to justice.”
VMO2 appears to support the idea of creating a Crime Prevention Agency charged with taking the “national and international action” necessary to prevent fraud and cybercrime, which was separately proposed via a recent report from the Police Foundation. The same report also called for a new National Anti-Fraud Data centre to be established with private companies legally required to share relevant data, as well as a new national strategy to recruit and upskill investigators.
The remarks largely echo the same position that VMO2 took almost exactly one year ago today (here).