Charity regulator opens more than 600 fraud investigations over the last year

The Charity Commission has opened 603 investigations relating to fraud over the last year, its latest figures show.

It has also launched an additional 99 probes into charities hit by cybercrime issues.

The figures are for the period November 2023 and October 2024, which also reveal it received 264 serious incident reports relating to fraud.

To coincide with the release of these latest figures the regulator has announced it has published fresh guidance to protect charities from fraud and cyber-crime.

These replace the regulator’s previous guidance and are designed to be more concise and easier for trustees to use, it says. A shorter version has also been made available.

The guidance includes explanations of what to do if fraud or attempted fraud is discovered and stresses the importance of robust internal controls.

Phishing is the most common form of cyber related fraud charities encounter, the guidance warns. This is when fraudulent emails are sent to garner personal and financial details.

The guide has also been released to coincide with Charity Fraud Awareness Week (November 25-29). This involves a raft of events taking place around the issue.

Further figures have been released during the week from other organisations involved including consultancy BDO and the charity Fraud Advisory Panel.

Their annual report into fraud in the charity sector found that two in five charities reported fraud or attempted fraud over the last year.

“Protecting your charity from fraud and cyber-crime can understandably seem daunting, but there are many small, inexpensive steps charities can take to reduce the risk of any potential internal or external fraudster being successful,” said Charity Commission head of guidance and practice Mazeda Alam.

“Introducing a simple measure such as having dual authorisations for all financial transactions can help avoid these issues arising – which are often opportunistic.

“It is every trustee’s responsibility to ensure they’ve done all they reasonably can to protect their charity from harm – reading our guidance is the best place to start.”