Online banking customers 'should beware of phishing emails'

By Sarah Engle, Thu 24 Jul 2008 - Published in Banking

The number of people using online banking, in order to carry out functions such as checking accounts and arranging loans, has risen by 505 per cent in the past seven years, according to figures from Apacs.

In 2000 3.5 million people chose to manage their finances online. This had increased to over 21 million by 2007.

Apacs claims that the chances of falling victim to online banking fraud are "very low", stating the industry's 2007 statistics revealed a drop of 33 per cent in online banking fraud losses compared with 2006.

However, it adds phishing scams have become more common this year. It states in the first half of 2008 there has been a 180 per cent rise in such fraud when measured against the same period last year.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at Apacs, said: "We strongly urge banking customers to make sure they remain wary of online scams such as unsolicited emails claiming to be from their bank."

Meanwhile, research by National Savings and Investments has revealed 31 per cent of Brits do not know how inflation can affect their savings.

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