How The UK Government Uses Artificial Intelligence To Identify Welfare And State Benefits Fraud

Investment in data strategy, technologies that support machine learning and artificial intelligence, and hiring skilled data professionals is a top priority for the UK government. Ministers of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have rolled out and tested AI to automate claims processing and fight fraud within their department. Over the last year, the department unleashed artificial intelligence algorithms to track down large-scale corruption of the benefit and welfare program to stop criminal gangs who are responsible for extremely large losses. Ultimately, this effort protects taxpayers' money and gets the benefits to those who they are intended for. Benefit fraud at the hands of criminal gangs cost the Department of Work and Pensions nearly £2.1 billion in 2016, a rise of £200 million in just one year.