Concern over UK identity theft rise

13:15 24th October 2008

Identity theft among UK web users is three times more likely compared to other Europeans, a new study has revealed.

The online payment firm PayPal disclosed in its Global Trust and Safety Report that in the UK, 14 per cent of online shoppers have fallen victim to identity fraud, compared to just three per cent in Germany, five per cent in Spain and six per cent in France.

In addition, the poll found that 49 per cent of online users in the UK are very concerned about identity theft, with many underestimating their own role in preventing it from occurring with obvious passwords.

Michal Barrett, chief information security officer at PayPal, believes that these findings should be a concern for online businesses.

He said: "This survey shows that whilst concerns about ID theft form a universal language, more identity theft tends to occur in countries where a higher percentage of e-commerce is concentrated."

Last week, a poll commissioned by Cisco disclosed that employees are continuing to practice behaviours that put company data at risk.