We challenged DWP to explain how it would address the risk that legitimate benefit claims are unfairly delayed or reduced as a result of an algorithms targeting innocent behaviour, such as frequent changes of circumstances. DWP acknowledged that some level of algorithmic bias is to be expected because of how benefit payments work, for example Universal Credit payments are higher for people aged over 25, so older claimants are more likely to be flagged because fraudsters will tend to claim to be older. It asserted that while there “clearly is a hypothetical risk” of unfair impacts on claimants, that there is no evidence of that risk manifesting now. It explained that it is performing analysis regularly to identify bias in the outputs of its algorithms.72 But the NAO has reported that so far this analysis has been largely inconclusive because of limitations in the available data about claimants.73 DWP told us it did not want to provide any further detail on how it will prevent unfair impacts to avoid tipping off potential fraudsters.74