THE more sophisticated society becomes, so it seems the more likely we are likely to fall victim to the unscrupulous.

In the days when a man's worth was measured by the number of groats in his pocket and the size of the pig in his yard, life was simple. The only chance you had of being robbed was someone in a black mask riding up and shouting "Stand and deliver".

Crooks in days gone by were easy to spot - it was the stripey jumpers, and bag with Swag written on it.

Nowadays, knowing thine enemy seems a far more complex matter.

Last night's Fraud Frenzy on ITV1 revealed how many of us are falling victim to various scams involving those little pieces of plastic which reveal so much about us: our credit cards.

There were some real horror stories as unsuspecting victims told how their bank accounts were raided, how companies were conned into supplying goods without being paid and how technology appears to be helping the crooks a lot more than the honest people.

For every good idea it seems there is a gang of warped individuals seeking to turn it to their own advantage.

After watching Fraud Frenzy I must say I felt like cutting up the credit card, emptying my account and putting everything under the mattress. Or I could always buy a pig!