Public still vulnerable to web fraud

Phishing is a growing problem

A successful fraud attempt on the average working adult is worth some £14,500 to online criminals, who can empty current and savings accounts and credit cards quickly and easily once they have gained access, according to a report published today.

The report from government online security initiative Get Safe Online also found that most UK citizens do not have the right internet security controls in place to prevent such attacks.

Getting the right protection is easy, according to Tony Neate, managing director of Get Safe Online. "If internet users invest a relatively small amount of time and money in ensuring that they are fully protected and up-to-date, the risk of such financial loss is almost negligible," he said.

"To install the essential software and learn about the key safety measures on the Get Safe Online website takes a matter of a few hours, a small but worthwhile inconvenience compared to the potential loss."

The Get Safe Online report, published today, shows that almost half (48 per cent) of UK internet users are still not updating their anti-virus software frequently enough to make it effective.

And almost a quarter (23 per cent) do not have any anti-spyware protection, while nearly half (47 per cent) do not have website authentication software to protect against phishing attacks.

The report warned that the number of phishing attacks is rising sharply, and that 23 per cent of UK internet users surveyed said that they, or someone they knew, had fallen victim to such an attack this year, compared to just eight per cent in 2007.

Figures released in October by UK payment service Apacs showed that online banking fraud losses totalled £21.4m during the six months to June 2008, a 185 per cent rise on the 2007 figure.

Home Office minister Alan Campbell claimed that the government is taking e-crime seriously. "That is why we recently announced a new £7m police unit dedicated to tackling cyber-crime and clamping down on internet fraud," he said.