Where scams and phishing are hitting hardest.
A regional, fully aggregated view of scam and phishing pressure across the UK. No individuals, no addresses, no accounts — only region-level rates per 100,000 people, so families and schools can see which tactics are surging near them.
Illustrative dataset — not official statistics.
The figures on this page are synthetic. They are modelled to resemble the relative regional pattern described in published UK sources (listed below) so the map can be used for teaching, research and dissertation work. Do not cite these numbers as real crime data, and do not use them to judge any individual, street or community. For live official figures, go straight to the sources.
Fake bank, HMRC and delivery texts or emails asking you to log in.
- 1.341London+17%
- 2.291North West+13%
- 3.283West Midlands+12%
- 4.276South East+10%
- 5.268Scotland+8%
- 6.264Yorkshire & the Humber+9%
- 7.259East of England+8%
- 8.251East Midlands+7%
- 9.244South West+6%
- 10.242North East+11%
- 11.233Wales+6%
- 12.211Northern Ireland+5%
Rates are per 100,000 residents so larger regions do not automatically look worse. Percentages compare the last 90 days with the 90 days before.
How to read this map
Aggregated data is useful for spotting which tactic is surging — it is never evidence about a person or a place.
Anonymised by design
The smallest unit shown is a whole UK region of millions of people. No postcode, school, household or individual is ever represented, and nothing you do on Project OWL feeds this page.
Trends, not league tables
A higher rate often means people there report more, not that they are targeted more. Use the direction of travel — which tactic is climbing — rather than comparing regions against each other.
Under-reporting is huge
UK research suggests most fraud is never reported, and young people report least of all. Treat every figure here as a floor, not a total.
Sources & methodology
What the shape of this dataset is based on, and what we did to it.
Reference sources
Method
- Six scam families were chosen from the categories used in official UK fraud reporting.
- Each of the twelve UK regions was given a synthetic rate per 100,000 residents, shaped so the relative ordering resembles published regional patterns.
- Ninety-day change and a six-month national index were generated to demonstrate trend detection.
- No user data, no Project OWL reports and no personal data of any kind are used, stored or displayed.
If you have been targeted, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 (or Police Scotland on 101) and forward scam texts to 7726 free of charge.