In recent years, the risk of being exposed to a fraud has increased drastically. In 2023 alone, the number of reported fraud offenses amounted to 238,371, and during the same period the fraudsters’ criminal profits amounted to a breathtaking SEK 7.5 billion – 22 percent more than the year before.
According to the police, the profits are reinvested in new criminal schemes such as drugs and weapons.
The biggest and most common crime profits in 2023 were:
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Swish was launched in Sweden in 2011.
Today, the beta app has 8,400,000 users.
In February 2024, Swedes swiped 77,769,179 times, for a total sum of SEK 39,873,738,634.
There are 325,000 companies in Sweden that take payments with Swish.
20 percent of Swedes aged 16 to 54 prefer to pay with Swish.
It is also possible to swipe to numbers in eight other countries: Finland, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland and Portugal.
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Have you received a Swish from an unknown person? Photo: Press image Swish
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Fake “Swish” apps are spreading
Earlier in the autumn, several fake Swish apps began to flourish in places around the country. Using the scam apps, fraudsters were able to show that a payment had been made by showing the “fireworks” and “green tick” that appeared in the real Swish app when a transfer was made. But in reality, it was fake apps that showed that the payment or transfer went through, when in fact it didn’t.
READ MORE: Fake Swish app warning – how to recognize it
Never click on links in emails or text messages that come from an unknown sender.
Never start BankID if someone calls and asks for it.
If someone tries to pressure you into doing something, think twice and check the task carefully.
If an offer for a profitable investment concerns, for example, cryptocurrency, you should be well aware of how it works before making an investment. In comparison, you can think that you don’t invest in a company without understanding what business the company conducts.
Source: The police
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Got an unknown Swish? Then it could be fraud
In addition to using fake apps, the fraudster can use Swish to take advantage of you and thus access your money.
Maybe you received a Swish transfer from someone you don’t know. In cases where payments come from unknown persons, it may be a common mistake. But it’s never wrong to be vigilant because it’s become increasingly common for scams to happen that way. Criminals who launder money can send money via Swish to unknown people and then contact them and ask for the money to be refunded via the app, but then to a different phone number.
The site Mobile writes that this is a common way to both launder money and at the same time make it difficult for the police to identify transactions. If you suspect that you have been the victim of a fraud where you were asked to swipe the money back to another number, you should contact both the bank and the police for advice on how to act.
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