Police are warning the public to take care as cyber crimes are on the increase in the county.

Officers issued a stark reminder that although general crime is down, criminal activity online has spiked.

Burglaries in Cumbria have dropped, with police receiving 111 reports of break-ins in November 2020, compared to 163 in November 2019 – a fall of 32 per cent, according to figures from the police crime reports database.

A police spokesman said: “While crime remains lower, online criminality is increasing and we would urge people to take steps to protect themselves online by taking measures such as using anti-virus software, not giving personal information prior to verifying credentials and not trusting emails and text messages asking you to click links and confirm bank details.”

Insurance company Aviva warned that although some burglars may have been deterred, research finds that nearly two-thirds of burglaries happen while people are in their homes.

While burglaries represented 4.3 per cent of all reports made to police in the area in November 2019, they represented 3.4 per cent of offences reported during the same month last year. Reported crime as a whole fell by 14 per cent in Cumbria during the period.

Alex Mayes, external affairs manager at Victim Support, said: “While there has been a fall in reported crime during the coronavirus pandemic, this does not mean that crime or the impact it has on people has gone away.

“Some crimes such as burglary and theft reduced during lockdown. However, people contacting us for help as a result of other crimes such as domestic abuse, sexual violence, hate crime, fraud and anti-social behaviour has increased.

"We also know that many crimes go unreported during Covid restrictions as victims may not be in a position to safely report incidents to the police.”