Social security fraud in Austria: Over 5,000 suspects and 23 million losses!

Social security fraud in Austria: Over 5,000 suspects and 23 million losses!

In 2024, Austria recorded a significant increase in social security fraud suspects. According to a report by Salzburg24 A total of 5,007 people were identified as suspects, an increase of 7.82 percent compared to 2023.

The total damage caused by these fraud cases amounted to over 23 million euros, more precisely 23.36 million euros. Interestingly, this amount is 2.15 million euros less than the damage in 2023. The data comes from a parliamentary question from the FPÖ, which was answered by Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP).

Statistical evaluation

Of the 5,007 suspects, 1,400 were Austrian citizens, while 3,607 people came from other countries. The clearance rate in the area of ​​social benefit fraud is particularly striking: almost 100 percent of the cases, specifically 99.5 percent, were solved. Of a total of 4,865 crimes, 4,841 were solved.

• Wien verzeichnete einen Schadenshöhe von 11,19 Millionen Euro, was einem Rückgang von 636.000 Euro oder minus 9,36 Prozent im Vergleich zu 2023 entspricht.
• In Vorarlberg stieg der Schaden auf 1,01 Millionen Euro, das entspricht einem beeindruckenden Anstieg von 60,07 Prozent.
• Ein besonders auffälliger Anstieg wurde in der Steiermark registriert, wo der Schaden um 69,9 Prozent auf 2,67 Millionen Euro zunahm.

In summary, it can be said that Austria is confronted with both an increase in the number of suspects and a high clearance rate. These developments highlight the authorities' efforts to combat benefit fraud. For more information please follow this link: crown.