The government has been urged to lead a “cross-border war” against fraudsters to help tackle a problem which is costing the UK economy tens of billions.

In a new report, the Social Market Foundation (SMF) estimated that 21 per cent of adults globally have been victims of fraud in the last three years.

In that period £168bn fell into the hands of fraudsters, the survey showed. Including the wider social costs, the SMF estimated that fraud was costing the global economy £420bn.