Cyber and Fraud Hub secures two-year funding from Arnold Clark – Scottish Business News

The Cyber and Fraud Hub, launched earlier this year by the Cyber and Fraud Centre Scotland to support members of the public affected by cyber and fraud crime, has received a substantial donation to support its first two years from car industry leader Arnold Clark, to support more people to stay safe online.  

This generous donation will allow the Hub to continue its work throughout its first two years, during which time the team expect to help hundreds of people through education, victim support and recovery of funds.

Since launching in June 2024, the Hub has provided advice and support to 40 individuals affected by the growing threat of cyber and fraud crime, has worked on fraud cases worth £228,000, and has helped recover £87,000 so far for victims.  
 
The Hub is quickly becoming a vital resource in combating the increasing complexity of cyber and fraud attacks.

Among the most common calls received by the Hub include those from victims of false investment frauds commonly seen on social media channels, or authorised push payment frauds (APP) where victims are tricked into sending money to a fraudsters’ bank account, often by a criminal impersonating someone from a bank security team. 

Arnold Clark’s donation is especially significant given their own experience with a large-scale cybersecurity attack in December 2022.

The impact of the incident highlighted the serious consequences cyberattacks can have on both individuals and businesses, reinforcing initiatives like the Cyber and Fraud Hub. 
 
Eddie Hawthorn, CEO of Arnold Clark, said: “I know personally how much damage and distress cyber attacks cause and we wanted to help people going through this – the way we have chosen to do this is support the Cyber and Fraud Hub, to increase the fantastic support they can give to victims when they need it most.” 

Jude McCorry, CEO of Cyber and Fraud Centre, said: “This funding from Arnold Clark represents a major step forward in collectively addressing the growing threat of cyber and fraud crime.

“It enables the Hub to provide essential assistance to individuals facing the daunting reality of being a victim of these types of crime.

“The impact can be enormous both mentally and financially – this funding allows us to extend our services to those in need.” 

We are immensely grateful to Arnold Clark for their generous support of the Cyber and Fraud Hub. With this funding, we can hit the ground running and will have a huge direct impact on the support we can deliver immediately.” 

If you, or someone you know, has been a victim of cyber or fraud crime, you can call the Cyber and Fraud Hub on 0808 281 3580, or visit https://cyberfraudhub.org.