Over 20 million people have been targeted by financial scammers, or know people who have been, in the past year, according to new research.

Almost 4 in 10 (38%) of those surveyed by The Openwork Partnership, one of the UK’s largest financial advice networks, said they have seen a rise in financial scam attempts that they, or people they know, have faced in the past year with 17% reporting a significant increase.

Over 1 in 10 (13%) of those surveyed said they, or people they know, have lost money as a result of financial scams.

Only 4% of those surveyed by the network said the number of scam attempts has dropped in the past year.

Almost half of those surveyed felt there was not enough being done to combat financial scams. Over 4 in 10 (45%) said they were frustrated that the authorities such as the police, the government and regulators, appear to be doing nothing to stop scams. A similar number (39%) said they were outraged that attempted crime goes unpunished.

The research by the advice network found email is the way most people will be targeted by scammers. Over half of those surveyed (55%) said they have received suspicious emails or know others who have been targeted. However, 52% said they or people they know have been targeted on the phone and 44% by text. Around 7% had received scam letters.

Regionally, London had seen the biggest increase in scams (48%) with over a quarter (27%) of respondents saying that they have been or know someone who has been a victim of a financial scam.

Wales saw the smallest rise in scams with 29% of respondents saying they have seen a rise in scams and 4% saying that they have been or know someone who has been a victim of a financial scam.

Mike Morrow, chief commercial officer at The Openwork Partnership, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic has been a playground for financial scammers as more people have had to go online to carry out essential business.

“We would urge people to always take professional financial advice before making major decisions and always report attempted scams where possible.”

Research was conducted among 2,001 UK adults aged 18-plus using an online methodology by independent researchers Opinium between 2 July and 6 July.