Joint Fraud Taskforce board minutes: 26 February 2020
Published 23 July 2021
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Attendees
- Mike Haley (Chair) (Cifas)
- Nick Downing (Cifas)
- Neil Masters (Cifas / JFT Secretariat)
- Karen Baxter (CoLP)
- Alex Rothwell (CoLP)
- Benjamin Russell (NECC)
- Louise Baxter-Scott (National Trading Standards)
- Alasdair MacFarlane (RBS)
- John Formby (UK Finance)
- James Martin (BRC)
- Kiera Harper (Home Office)
- Katherine McNulty (Home Office)
- Albina Paloi (Home Office / JFT Secretariat)
- Lucy Malenczuk (Stop Scams UK)
Agenda Item 1 – Introductions and opening remarks (5 Mins)
Mike Haley (Chair) opened this meeting of the management board by welcoming Kiera Harper (Home Office, Fraud Policy Deputy Director) and Nick Downing, (Cifas, Chief Intelligence Officer).
Mike explained that the focus of this meeting was to provide an update on the status of work across the workstreams, and to agree the Draft ToR for JFT going forward in light of the changing fraud landscape (noting that we may need to revisit the ToR as and when the outcomes of the Home Office Fraud Review and the Independent Serious and Organised Crime Review are completed).
Agenda Item 2 - Agree minutes and actions of the 26 September 2019 meeting together with matters arising
- No issue raised with minutes from previous management board meeting.
- Update on Actions from previous management board (26 September 2019) below.
| Action | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Action 1: All to provide Katherine with other possible data sources for inclusion in the performance framework by 11 October, with a view to the Board signing off the suite of metrics at their next meeting. | JFT Secretariat | Recommendation to pause. We received several contributions from board members but we are pausing this work in light of developments on the Economic Crime Performance Framework into which this will need to dock. JFT Secretariat will continue to work to ensure that the performance framework for EC is inclusive and reflective of ongoing JFT work, and future projects. |
| Action 2: Katherine and JFT Secretariat to work with NECC to ensure alignment of performance frameworks as they develop. | JFT Secretariat | As above. JFT Secretariat in discussion with NECC and Deloitte colleagues. |
| Action 3: Louise to consider recommendations from the three reports discussed at the JFT Stakeholder Group and see which of those recommendations are, or could be, addressed through the banking interventions work they are leading on. | Louise Baxter (NTS) | Completed. Next step is to assess whether the Banking Interventions group should be closed down. |
| Action 4: Graeme to map current activity on fraud, including summarising the activity of Project Bloom to identify where the JFT could assist, particularly in relation to investment related pension fraud. | Graeme Biggar (NECC) | Completed as part of Operation OTELLO and the Home Office System Review. Next step is to consider whether there is a role for JFT in future campaigns. |
| Action 5: NECC, Home Office and UK Finance to field a representative to attend the legal and accountancy roundtable on 3 Oct. | NECC, Home Office and UK Finance | Completed – roundtable held. |
| Action 6: Graeme and Alex to discuss how the Collective Response work should be taken forward, and what changes and resources are needed to ensure it has a more strategic impact. | Graeme Biggar (NECC) and Alex Rothwell (CoLP) | Completed – discussion held. All agreed that this work will no longer feature as part of JFT’s work programme given that it has largely been overtaken by OTELLO. |
Agenda Item 3 – Stop Scams UK – Update on activity by Lucy Malenczuk
Lucy Malenczuk, of Stop Scams UK, provided an update on the work being produced by Stop Scams UK in order to help the Board consider how we can work together moving forward.
Joining up with Stop Scams UK will ensure that we ensure transparency and limit duplication of work.
Lucy agreed to provide an update on the business plan upon its completion, outlining the various initiatives that Stop Scams UK will be taking forward.
Action 1 – Lucy Malenczuk to provide update on Stop Scams UK business plan.
Agenda Item 4 – Project OTELLO – Update on the operational step-up against fraud by Benjamin Russell
Ben Russell (NECC) provided an update on Project OTELLO and how NECC intends to further develop the step-up in the operational response to fraud.
The minutes of this item have been redacted for publication purposes.
Agenda Item 5 – Home Office Fraud Review and landscape – Update by Kiera Harper
Kiera Harper (Home Office) provided an update on the progress of the Home Office Fraud review.
The review is considering the accountability structures, capacity and capability, and policy of our current fraud system.
Kiera noted that the final findings and recommendations will be informed by the independent review of SOC, led by Sir Craig Mackey QPM.
Agenda Item 6 - Agree Draft Terms of Reference for JFT and membership, led by Chair
Board members were provided with the draft ToR in advance of the meeting.
All members were provisionally content with the updated ToR.
This ToR is reflective of the changing nature of JFT, focusing more heavily on the Protect space. However, following the outcomes of the independent Serious Organised Crime review, led by Sir Craig Mackey QPM, and the Home Office Fraud System Review, we will seek to revisit this ToR.
Recognising that it may be several months before those pieces of work start to feed through into real world change, in the meantime, the ToR provides a sensible way of working going forward, ensuring that all board members play an active role in the development and delivery of JFT Projects.
Agenda Item 7 – Workstream Updates
Configurable Bank Account initiative
The proposal is to design, working across the financial industry, an account for customers who want extra protections against fraud, giving the customer greater control over how they use their bank account(s).
The main objective of the project is to protect the customer and to prevent the making of a payment, by any channel, to a fraudster.
There is no significant change to infrastructure as this will primarily be a repurposing or rebadging of current offers but within a protect wrapper.
Work continues with UK Finance and NTS to develop a proposal.
Understanding the threat and vulnerabilities
All members recognised that the original work under this workstream has now been largely taken over by operation Otello.
The Group agreed to close the workstream.
Telecoms and Banking Group tacking Vulnerabilities
Group are exploring what vulnerabilities we can close down through collaborative work between the banking and Telecommunications sectors.
The group are looking to further engage with Ofcom and the City of London Police in order to better understand what vulnerabilities they are best place to tackle.
Areas of interest to both industries Fraudsters holding the line open and ‘Smishing’.
The next meeting of this workstream will be in March where the group will seek to put in place an Action Plan to deliver the Economic Crime Plan Action on closing down vulnerabilities by December 2020.
Action 2 – Home Office to provide update on the JFT’s role in informing the work of the county lines digital device review.
Legal and Regulatory
The current focus of this workstream has been to develop a project to enable us to repatriate more money back to victims, by taking it from the criminal that stole it.
This issue presents some difficult legal and technical challenges that have hampered progress on this issue to date.
The first meeting produced a few interesting ideas for how we could repatriate funds to victims. These ideas need to be explored and developed in more detail.
The group has continued to consider the options available and is expected to reconvene in early March.
Disruptions
Banking Intervention Group to be closed down as project objective shave been met. All agreed with this action.
Workstream is now considering what short, medium and long term projects to continue to work on.
NTS considering what initiatives would be useful to.
Action 3 – Louise Baxter-Scott to share “What works” literature materials with the rest of the board.
Agenda Item 8 - Introduction of a JFT Protect Risk and Issues Register, led by Chair (10 Mins).
Risk Register developed by JFT Secretariat, based on updates from the workstream leads.
All Group members were content with using this tool going forward.
Agenda Item 9 – AOB
Mike Hayley (Chair) called for a stakeholder group meeting in April.
Mike recommended that we engage with Citizens Advice and invite them to sit in the stakeholder group.
Action 4 - Secretariat to arrange next stakeholder meeting and invite Citizens Advice.
Summary of Actions
Action 1 – Lucy Malenczuk to provide update on Stop Scams UK business plan.
Action 2 – Home Office to provide update on the JFT’s role in informing the work of the county lines digital device review.
Action 3 - Louise Baxter-Scott to share “What works” literature materials with the rest of the board.
Action 4 - Secretariat to arrange next stakeholder meeting and invite Citizens Advice.