Responding to the government's announcement that it will include advertising on social media and search engines within the scope of the Online Safety Bill, David Postings, Chief Executive of UK Finance, said:

We strongly welcome the government's announcement that it will expand the scope of the Online Safety Bill to include advertising on social media and search engines. UK Finance, alongside a number of other bodies, has long been calling for the government to make this change.

?This is particularly important given we know the majority of authorised push payment fraud starts online and that criminals often post fake adverts to try and trick victims.

?The banking and finance industry is leading the fight against fraud, but the scale of the threat means it's vital that all sectors, including online firms, do more to help protect the public. We look forward to working with the government and tech companies, including through the Online Fraud Steering Group, on further measures to tackle economic crime.