Scams and identity theft: calls to the ministry's cybersecurity assistant skyrocket

BarcelonaConcern over cyberattacks in Spain is at an all-time high. This is shown by the latest data from the Ministry for Digital Transformation regarding the public cybersecurity assistance service offered by the National Cybersecurity Institute (Incibe) to citizens and businesses: according to the head of the digital portfolio, Óscar López, the contact number 017 – which directs to the aforementioned service – received over 95,000 calls between January and June, almost double the number attended in 2025 (49,599) and practically the same as those registered throughout 2024 (98,546).

According to the data published by the ministry, both citizens and businesses that have contacted the cybersecurity service have done so mainly to request consultations on possible cyber scams. 40% of individuals who have contacted Incibe have warned of possible cases of phishing; that is, instances where the cybercriminal seeks to trick the victim into providing personal or financial information through emails, phone messages (smishing), or fraudulent calls (vishing). On the other hand, the institute has registered an exponential increase in consultations related to fake news, which have grown by 175% when compared to the first half of 2023.

Phishing has also been predominant among businesses, with over 30% of consultations directed to the cybersecurity service. In the case of businesses, however, calls related to possible identity theft have surged to 20%. Incibe has also detected a substantial increase in communications related to the so-called CEO fraud. This is a type of cybercrime in which a cybercriminal impersonates a manager to ask an employee in the company's finance department for an urgent transfer to an external account, alleging, for example, an urgent payment to a supplier. According to data provided by the ministry, about 10% of all contacts with businesses have been related to this type of criminal activity, triple that of 2023.

Unlike companies and the general public, minors have mostly made queries related to social media activity. More than 17% of young people who have contacted the service have asked questions related to privacy and online reputation; a similar ratio to queries about sexual extortion, which for the first time equal social media activity as the group's main concern. On the other hand, 5% of registered minors have contacted the Institute for cases of cyberbullying.

"New crimes"

According to López in a press briefing, consultations with the cybersecurity service have increased, partly, "because user awareness has improved". The head of Digital Transformation, however, also acknowledged that "as digital society advances, new crimes emerge". "That is why, from the government, we are taking measures to protect citizens, such as the anti-telephone scams plan," added the minister.

In this regard, López praised the work of telecommunications operators, who have already blocked more than 300 million calls and nearly 27 million potentially fraudulent messages since the anti-scam plan was launched. In 2026, as the ministry points out in a statement, two new measures will come into effect to strengthen this digital barrier. Firstly, from mid-September, telephone operators will block all SMS from companies or brands that are not registered in a database of the National Commission of Markets and Competition, to ensure that users only receive communications "from legitimate entities". From October, on the other hand, all commercial calls will have to use a number starting with 400, so that citizens can more easily recognize spam content.