Alex Wood is a globally sought-after finance speaker and former high-profile fraudster. In his youth he was a violin prodigy and toured internationally.
At 24, a career-ending injury and mounting debts pushed him into crime, resulting in several years in prison.
He was released in 2022 and has since turned a new page. Alex made his speaking debut in February 2023 and has since delivered over 100 keynote speeches worldwide.
He is a resident member of the BBC ‘Scam Secrets’ team and is a regular guest on mainstream television.
Alex also consults for several financial institutions so as to enable a deep understanding of the ‘Fraud Mindset.’
The UK Government estimates that fraud accounts for 41% of all reported crime, making it the most prevalent offence affecting individuals and organisations.
With £1.17 billion stolen last year alone, the UK is facing a financial‑crime crisis.
I am now recognised as one of the world’s leading fraud experts, but my background is not in law enforcement or finance – I was a prolific fraudster for over 25 years, making false representations to steal millions.
Some of my crimes were theatrically audacious, such as living for seven months in 5‑star London hotels while impersonating the 13th Duke of Marlborough, while others were deeply harmful, costing victims their life savings and in some cases, their health.
Across three prison sentences, I spent a total of eight years incarcerated, each sentence longer than the last.
After my release in January 2022, I shifted from ‘poacher to gamekeeper,’ sharing my insight with global banks, law enforcement, the UK Government and the public.
I am a resident contributor to BBC Radio 4’s ‘Scam Secrets,’ a weekly show and podcast hosted by Shari Vahl, where I analyse real fraud cases alongside forensic linguist Dr Elisabeth Carter.
All frauds share two defining features: A false representation and an unlawful gain.
Whether or not the victim ultimately loses money, the offence is complete once a person is exposed to that risk.
One of the most damaging methods used by modern scammers is Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud.
This typically involves a fraudster posing as a bank or police officer and manipulating the victim into transferring money into a so‑called ‘safe account.’
APP fraud is attractive to criminals because it produces large sums quickly and leaves limited evidence compared with slower, paper‑heavy schemes such as boiler-room operations – a form of fraud I encountered first-hand in prison when meeting offenders convicted through fingerprint evidence on mailed documents.
Police estimate that between 2017 and 2018 I stole up to £50 million through APP fraud.
At the time, I failed to appreciate the devastation I was causing, companies collapsed, jobs were lost and many victims suffered significant distress.
Today, the threat landscape has evolved further. Large Language Models (LLMs), including DeepFake technologies, have made fraud more scalable and efficient.
Tasks that once required hours of preparation can now be completed in minutes.
Researching victims, building profiles and preparing persuasive scripts – all of this can be done using tools like ChatGPT and whilst ChatGPT contains ethical guardrails, fraudsters circumvent them by reframing requests.
The technology, when misused, can save fraudsters 90% of their preparation time and make their interactions significantly more effective.
This article was originally published in the January edition of Security Journal UK. To read your FREE digital edition, click here.
