Death Records Released to Tackle Identity Fraud



Death records are to be released for the first time to stop fraudsters using these identities to commit crime - known as Impersonation of the Deceased fraud (IOD).

Each week vetted organisations, including credit checking agencies, will be sent encrypted files, containing the details of everyone who died in the UK by the General Register Office (GRO) for England & Wales, together with its counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland. These files will be used to detect fraudulent activity.

IOD fraud sees criminals using obituaries, or other information to identify someone who has recently died, to build up an identity to open fraudulent bank or credit accounts.

Home Office minister with responsibility for identity fraud Meg Hillier said:

“I welcome the release of death records by the three Registrars General in the UK which will not only help to combat identity fraud but will also reduce the impact on relatives of the deceased forced to deal with the consequences of their loved ones’ identities being stolen.

“Identity fraud continues to be a serious problem which we know helps enable other criminal activity such as benefit fraud, illegal immigration, illegal working, drug trafficking and terrorism.”

Fraud protection service CIFAS believes this is one of Britain’s most common forms of identity theft which has a devastating effect on relatives who often have to spend thousands of pounds dealing with the aftermath. The latest estimate of the cost of identity fraud to the UK economy, published by the Identity Fraud Steering Committee, is £1.7bn a year.

Last month following an operation by the Identity and Passport Service (IPS), a 39-year-old Edinburgh man admitted stealing the identity of a dead child to open a bank account and obtain credit cards. Over three years more than £200,000 passed through the account.

Peter Hurst, Chief Executive of CIFAS the UK’s Fraud Prevention Service said:

“The number of individuals affected continues to be far too high. The work of the Home Office through the Identity Fraud Steering Committee and continuing work programmes is therefore vital, not least because bringing together key stakeholders has already achieved much both to educate people about identity fraud and how to protect against it.

“Identity fraud is serious, and no-one should be complacent about it. Quite apart from financial losses, the effect on victims can be very distressing. Where a victim’s identity has been seriously compromised, it can be an extremely time-consuming and frustrating process to untangle the threads of deception.”