Irish Examiner view: Online fraud relies on our shame and silence — so let's speak up

We must get over our embarrassment of being nabbed by online scammers and report it, as that's the one thing the criminals fear

If you've been caught out by online fraud you're not alone: Central Bank data suggests that 35% of adults in Ireland have experienced fraud online. So don't be afraid to report it. Picture: iStock

Many of us now conduct a lot of our business transactions via phones and other devices, continuing the reliance on online commerce built up during the pandemic.

Online financial activity has become so ubiquitous that it is difficult to imagine how people can even function without availing of that virtual option.

All of which makes this week’s Central Bank report about fraud deeply concerning — it has found that over 35% of adults in Ireland have experienced fraud. When those figures are broken down further, online crimes comes into sharp focus. Online purchase scams were the most common type of fraud, affecting almost half — 48% — of fraud victims.

The Central Bank also pointed out that what it termed “risky online behaviours” were the “single strongest predictor of fraud experience, more influential than age, income, or education level”. 

It is worth pointing out what the institution identified as such behaviours: Individuals making purchases from unfamiliar or unverified websites, using insecure channels such as email or messaging apps to share bank or credit card details, and sending money online to people without meeting them in person.

The Central Bank also stated that over a third of fraud victims never report the crimes.

For centuries, this has been an operating principle for fraudsters — they rely on the shame and embarrassment of their victims ensuring that those victims stay silent about being ‘caught out’ and looking foolish as a result.

This silence facilitates those criminals by keeping their activities out of the limelight. Those who are defrauded, however, should feel no embarrassment about such crimes when sophisticated criminal gangs are devoting huge time, effort, and resources to their activities.

It is understandable to be self-conscious about being victimised in this way, but one telling detail should encourage them to shed that sense of embarrassment.

The Central Bank report found that among victims who reported fraud to their bank, An Garda Síochána, or another relevant authority, 57% were able to recover their money.

If reporting one’s misfortune to prevent others suffering the same fate is not incentive enough, that should be serious motivation. 

Fraudsters thrive in ignorance and secrecy. Their methods and strategies need to be exposed as often as possible.

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More power to local media

A law being drafted in Australia appears to have the potential to empower local media and revive communities by means of an innovative tax proposal.

Large tech companies such as Meta, Google, and TikTok will face a dedicated 2.2% levy on local revenues under the law, with that revenue going to journalism outlets which produce content being used by those social media platforms.

“People are increasingly getting their news directly from Facebook, from TikTok, and from Google,” said Australia's communications minister Anika Wells.

And we believe it’s only fair that large digital platforms contribute to the hard work of journalism that enriches their feeds and that drives their revenue. 

There is room for manoeuvre for those companies, with Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese pointing out that they have the freedom to strike individual deals with journalism outlets and thus avoid the levy.

Predictably enough, those companies have been critical of the plan. In an astonishing display of hypocrisy, one Meta spokesperson described the proposal as a government-mandated transfer of wealth from one industry to another “with no connection to the value exchanged”.

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It is hard to take such preaching about wealth transfer and value seriously when it comes from a company with a long-standing record of mishandling users’ data, and which was recently fined hundreds of millions of dollars in the US for misleading users over child safety on one of its platforms.

Such large companies may seek to depict themselves as neutral publishers, a stance they often use as a defence against criticism for the material on their platforms, but the truth is rather different.

Mr Albanese summed up the situation succinctly this week when he said: “[Journalism] shouldn’t just be able to be taken by a large multinational corporation and used to generate profits for that organisation with no compensation appropriate for the people who produce that creative content.”

That is the heart of the matter, and it would be encouraging to see his lead followed in this country.

EU's good work on chargers 

Yesterday was a notable day for technology in Europe, and perhaps also for the harmony of families everywhere in the continent.

EU rules on common chargers now apply to laptops, which means all new laptops sold in the union must support USB-C charging. 

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In December 2024 those rules came into force for mobile phones, tablets, and various other devices. Understandably, laptop manufacturers were given a longer lead-in time in order for manufacturing redesign to take effect and to transition to the common charging system.

There are valid reasons for the change. EU officials have estimated that the common charging system could save consumers up to €250m, while the change will also mean fewer discarded chargers — those amount to approximately 11,000 tonnes of waste annually.

Surely the most significant household benefit may be one of easing conflict and argument when it comes to their devices, however. If family members across the continent no longer argue about who owns what charger for a particular laptop, then the EU has done a very good day’s work here.