ALMOST 500 cyber crimes have been reported to North Yorkshire Police this year, ranging from fraud and identity theft to child sex exploitation.

The force is running a month-long campaign throughout October to raise awareness of cyber crime and encourage people to be more vigilant online.

A spokesman said 480 cyber-related incidents had been reported to the force since January, and the number of reports made by North Yorkshire residents to Action Fraud, which deals with online fraud, from January 1 to the end of July was 844, with a total cost to the victims of £1.8 million.

Detective Chief Inspector Matt Walker, head of cybercrime at NYP, said: "North Yorkshire is just as vulnerable to cyber crime as anywhere else in the country and the public need to understand that. The number of reported incidents is significant and whether of personal, financial or sexual nature, the fact is that this type of crime is a real increasing threat.

"One in four adults in the UK have fallen victim to identity fraud, and some of these live and work in North Yorkshire. Many people do not realise the scale of this problem and it is important to encourage people to take steps to ensure their own safety online. Don't give criminals the ammunition to target you online. Really think about the information you are posting on social media such as Facebook and Twitter and the data you are providing when making bookings or purchases online. The modern-day criminal has the technology and ingenuity to piece together data and personal information in order to target you via the internet."

All frontline detectives, intelligence officers and investigators within North Yorkshire Police are being trained to deal with cyber crime, and the force's Cybercrime Unit has been set up to specialise in tackling the new crime.

The unit is a small team which assists officers already dealing with cyber crimes who need specialist support, and offer prevention advice.

DCI Walker said: "By taking a few simple security measures and thinking carefully about what information you are putting online, the chances of becoming a victim of cybercrime can be reduced dramatically."

*A live Cybercrime webchat will be held at 5pm on Monday, October 19 at northyorkshire.police.uk/webchat where people can find out more about how to stay safe online.