A POLICE officer leading a campaign against financial fraud in the region has revealed how he was the victim of a gang who hacked into his bank account.

Detective Inspector Geoff Smith, the head of Durham Police's economic crime unit, is urging people to be on their guard as part of a national campaign launched today.

His personal experience of financial fraudsters came a few years ago when computer hackers gained access to his bank details.

Before the offence was discovered, the gang, suspected to be a team of students, ran up a bill of several hundred pounds dialling telephone chatlines at £1-a-minute.

Det Insp Smith's losses were reimbursed, but the hackers avoided prosecution.

Now he is advising residents and businesses to do everything they can to guard against identity fraudsters.

He said: "Identity fraud is a serious and growing problem, which potentially can affect anyone.

"But there are some basic steps everyone can take, for example shredding bank statements and receipts and checking your bank account for any unusual transactions.

"You should never respond to emails asking for personal or financial information, even if it claims to come from your bank or building society.

"If you receive a message of this kind, contact the company for guidance, using a telephone number or website address you know is genuine."

The call comes as part of the National Identity Fraud Prevention Week campaign, which aims to educate consumers and commercial organisations about the preventative steps that can be taken.

The week is supported by all police forces, the DVLA, the Serious Organised Crime Agency, the Association for Payment Clearing Services, the Federation of Small Businesses and HM Revenue and Customs.

Despite continuing efforts to combat identity fraud, which is one of the country's fastest-growing crimes, research for the campaign shows that too many people are not protecting themselves.

A survey carried out by polling company Populus found that more than 19 million households regularly place sensitive material in their waste and recycling bins, while one in ten people throw away whole debit or credit numbers.

Det Insp Smith said: "Unfortunately, we are almost certain to see a huge rise in the volume and complexity of computer crime in the future. This is something which simply did not exist on any sort of scale ten years ago, but is now the preferred way of operating for some highly organised criminals.