Plastic Card Fraud: Increase in Russia

Date: November 20, 2004
Source: Computer Crime Research Center
By: Vitaliy Vehov

Companies, banks, other businesses try to hide the facts of data theft, cyber fraud, because they fear to lose investors’ and partners’ confidence. That’s why there is no comprehensive official statistics. Experts say that losses from cyber theft are 4 times more than traditional theft in U.S.

We knew almost nothing about counterfeit plastic cards before 1990. But in 1993 Visa и MasterCard have lost $ 72’000’000 in consequence of the fraud; $ 16’800’000 (23,4%) of the losses were caused by counterfeiting plastic cards. By 1994 the counterfeiting plastic cards made 28,6% (increase 5%).

According to the Main Information Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russian Federation, in 1997 there were registered 53 cases of manufacturing and distributing false plastic cards that caused losses 1’600’000 Rubles; 1998 – 98 cases (losses - 8’800’000 Rubles); 1999 – 325 cases (losses - 9’900’000 rubles); 2000 – 819 cases (losses – 3’200’000 Rubles); 2001 – 1508 cases (losses 6’400’000 Rubles); 2002 – 1814 cases (losses 27’300’000 Rubles); 2003 – 1740 cases (losses 45’700’000 Rubles).

For 5 years (from 1998 to 2002) number of this type crimes increased more than in 34 times, and losses increased in 17 times and made 26 200 Rubles per case in 2003.

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