City of London Police

Today we welcome the IP Crime Group members to our annual conference in London. The day was opened by Co-chair, Pete O’Doherty, Commissioner of City of London Police, reflecting upon operational and disruption activity across the UK and the progress of the group to drive new capability. The Group’s workstream leads also shared updates from the last year and how strengthened partnerships are helping us take new approaches to preventing IP crime.

On 9th January, a special commendation ceremony hosted by the City of London Police celebrated the outstanding contributions of cyber crime officers, staff, and volunteers from across the country. Individuals and teams were recognised for their efforts in keeping people safe online, bringing cybercrime offenders to justice, providing leadership and training, and supporting wider policing initiatives to address the ever-growing threat of cybercrime at local, regional, and national levels. The ceremony, held at the iconic Guildhall, was hosted by Deputy Commissioner Nik Adams and T/Commander Andrew Gould, who presented certificates to over 35 dedicated attendees. Ian Hickling from the National Cybercrime Team  awarded a Commissioners Commendation for his work as on the Police CyberAlarm initiative which has been instrumental in rolling out nationally. Additionally, Wendy Henderson and Martin R Peters MA CISMP FCIIS PIPSIO PIP4 were awarded Chief Superintendent Commendations for their exemplary leadership and professionalism in supporting the NPCC National Cybercrime Team’s work. The event was a wonderful celebration of the dedication, expertise, and hard work that goes into preventing and tackling cybercrime across the country.

Criminals use gyms too and they are particularly interested in your locker items. Don’t have the same PIN for multiple devices as it makes it easier for criminals to steal your personal devices and data.

🚨 Operation Reframe: Thursday, 16 January 🚨 Operation Reframe, led by the City of London Police, returns this evening Thursday, 16 January. This monthly initiative is focused on preventing violence against women and girls in the nighttime economy. Thanks to funding from the Eastern City, St John’s Ambulance medics will be present to provide crucial medical support. Additionally, Safe Havens will be available across the area for anyone who feels unsafe and needs assistance. Together, we’re working to ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone in the community. Watch the video to find out more about Operation Reframe and our community safety initiatives.

We have delivered letters to all of the gyms in the City to help combat the worrying trend criminals targeting gyms and their customers. The items stolen are often of very high-end and of sentimental value, including watches and wallets. We are running a period of action focussed on this crime and officers have been visiting gyms to ensure that they are taking every reasonable action to protect customers and to offer crime prevention initiatives. Read our letter to the gyms below: "I am writing to you as Head of Investigations for the City of London Police.   New year is a busy time for gyms in the square mile and you all do a great job of providing vital health boosts for large numbers of people with good intentions at New Year as well as your longer term customers.   We work very hard to keep all those who live and work in the City safe. You and your customers’ safety and security is very important to us.   There is a worrying trend of acquisitive criminals targeting gyms and their customers. The methods are various, including locker thefts after tailgating genuine customers, or even by entering using a day pass. Gym users’ pedal cycles are also at risk and sometimes deliberately targeted by thieves.   The items stolen are often of very high and sentimental value, including watches and wallets.   We want to work with you to do more to stop these thefts.   I ask that this year you try to practice some basic crime prevention;   1 – Have your staff be extra vigilant around lockers and who is accessing them. 2 – Ensure day pass users are actually using the gym facilities and have a clear plan for how you have identified users of day passes. 3 – Advise customers not to use their banking card PIN as a locker code and to ensure no-one is watching them use the locker. 4 - If you have separate valuables lockers outside of changing areas, ensure they are in view of staff or CCTV. 5 – Report any thefts to the police immediately. 6 – If your changing rooms are targeted, consider upgrading security in locker rooms. 7 – Ensure all your security functions, including CCTV and lockers, are functioning well at all times.   We will soon be running a period of action focussed on this crime type and officers will be visiting gyms to ensure that you are taking every reasonable action to protect customers and to offer crime prevention initiatives. I encourage you to work with officers and find ways to reduce crime.   I look forward to engaging with you soon and wish you all the best for the new year."

Be aware of your surroundings. Prolific thieves are targeting gym goers and stealing valuables like luxury watches and bank cards. Ensure you watch when entering on your locker keypad and never use the same number as your phone or bank PIN.

Strong collaboration is key to fighting financial crime.   That's why it was great to meet City of London Police Commissioner Pete O'Doherty this week.   It gave me the opportunity to formally congratulate him on his appointment.   Joined by our Chief Operating Officer Graham McNulty and City of London Police Deputy Commissioner Nik Adams, we covered a lot of ground in a short amount of time.   It's clear we share the same ambition for tackling fraud, bribery and corruption.   And we made a commitment to work every more closely in the years to come to get better results for victims of fraud.

New Year, New Me should not mean that you’re having to replace possessions or have your banking details stolen because a criminal has accessed your locker at the gym. We’re cracking down on this offence by ensuring gyms protect their clients better & by locking-up thieves.

Scott Billy Chambers, 35, has been handed a Criminal Behaviour Order for theft offences, banning him from entering the City for three years. He has been sentenced to 150 hours unpaid work and 25 days of Rehabilitation Activity Requirement. He has been remanded in prison.

🚨New Action Fraud alert 🚨 Action Fraud is warning those using Booking.com to book their holidays or accommodation that they could be targeted with suspicious emails or messages from hotels who have had their account taken over by fraudsters. Between June 2023 and September 2024, Action Fraud received 532 reports from individuals, with a total of £370,000 lost. How can you protect yourself? ➡️ No legitimate Booking.com transaction will ever require a customer to provide their credit card details by phone, email, or text message (including WhatsApp). ➡️ If you receive any urgent payment requests that require immediate attention, like a booking cancellation, immediately reach out to the Booking.com Customer Service team via the details on the official Booking.com website and/or app to confirm. ➡️ Any messages purporting to be from Booking.com that contain instructions to follow links and/or open/download files should be treated with caution. To read more: https://lnkd.in/eHV6JSsQ To report fraud: actionfraud.police.uk Report suspicious emails them by forwarding them to: report@phishing.gov.uk, or suspicious texts to the 7726 service