UK’s Safest Cyber Spaces: Areas with the Lowest Cybercrime Rates Revealed

In 2023, there were over 41,000 cybercrime cases across the UK, including phishing, distributing malware, and hacking. But which areas had the lowest number of cybercrime victims? New research has revealed that Dyfed-Powys Police ranks as one of the lowest areas for this type of crime.

The experts at Independent Advisor VPN have utilised data from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) to find the cybercrime rates in different UK areas, the cost of these offences, and the most common type of cybercrime in the last year.

The areas with the lowest rates of cybercrime:

Dyfed-Powys Police, covering Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, and Powys, reported 243 cybercrimes from February 2023 to January 2024 — over 27 times fewer reported incidents than the Metropolitan Police Service.

The other police forces with the lowest number of reported cybercrimes also tended to be concentrated in more rural areas. Other Welsh police forces faced similar levels of cybercrime, with Gwent Police recording 261 incidents and North Wales Police with 270 cases.

James Milin-Ashmore at Independent Advisor VPN comments:

“Less densely populated areas have fewer cybercrimes reports, as we might expect. However, this doesn’t mean you’re safe from attacks if you live rurally.

“Many cyber criminals carry out remote attacks where they can access your devices from a distance, most commonly using your IP address. As VPNs hide this address, they help to protect you from remote hacking, no matter where you live.”

The study also found:

• The Metropolitan Police Service dealt with the highest number of cybercrime reports in the past 12 months, with 6,781 incidents. This is more than three times higher than the second-highest police force, Greater Manchester. The Metropolitan Police Service also recorded £1.4 million in losses attributed to cybercrime.

• Bedfordshire Police has the highest rates of cybercrime when looking at population data. In the last year, there were a total of 1,078 reports which works out at roughly 151 reports per 100,000 people.

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