Lyon, France – Investigators from around the world are meeting at INTERPOL to exchange information and best practice in tackling social engineering fraud.

With criminals using increasingly sophisticated techniques, combined with growing access to the Internet worldwide, the two-day (24 and 25 November) expert group meeting will provide a global overview of the issue and identify emerging trends.

‘Social engineering fraud’ is a broad term that refers to scams through a range of means – including phone calls and social media – to manipulate or trick people into giving out confidential or personal information which can then be used for financial gain by the criminals involved.

Techniques can include an individual being tricked into running malware through opening attachments, or divulging sensitive information after receiving a fake communication which appears to come from a legitimate source such as a bank or company.

In 2014, INTERPOL’s Operation First Light targeting social engineering fraud resulted in the arrest in Thailand of more than 20 individuals and the identification of several syndicate heads who had been generating tens of millions of dollars in illicit profits. Chinese police indicated a reduction of 40 per cent in telecom fraud as a result of the operation.

The 14 countries taking part in the meeting, along with Europol, are Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Hong Kong (China), Luxembourg, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.